Table of Contents

Introduction Chapter 1 - Antecedents: Football in the Kingdom, 1919–1941 Chapter 2 - Liberation Football, 1941–1945 Chapter 3 - (Re)constructing the Yugoslav Game, 1945–1948 Chapter 4 - A ‘Golden Age’? Prestige, Problems and the ‘Third Way’ after 1948 Chapter 5 - Keeping the Revolution Alive: The Long 1970s Chapter 6 - After Tito – Nationalism! The 1980s Chapter 7 - The Maksimir Myth Chapter 8 - On the Brink: The 1990–1991 Season Chapter 9 - Football on the Frontlines, 1991–1995 Conclusion

Promotional Information

A unique and insightful look at the complex history of socialist Yugoslavia through the lens of football.

About the Author

Richard Mills is lecturer in Modern European History at the University of East Anglia, where he received his PhD, and has recently become the course director there for the BA in Modern History. Mills has published in peer-reviewed journals, edited collections and the popular sports magazine When Saturday Comes. He has guest lectured at the CIES's prestigious FIFA master's programme.

Reviews

A well-researched and well-written book on the country, its history, politics, nationalism and, ultimately, on football.
*European History Quarterly*

An exciting read ... The depth and quality of the scholarship shine through, making this book an important contribution and, hopefully, part of an ongoing dialogue with scholars based in different regional academic traditions.
*Journal of the Historical Association*

Scrupulously researched and draws on a dazzling array of archival sources and marginal publications ... This highly original study undeniably makes a valuable and scholarly contribution to our understanding of Yugoslav history, and a thoughtful and convincing case for the continued examination of the overt and covert means by which sport is politicized.
*Slavonic and East European Review*

Admirably researched in archives throughout the former Yugoslavia, in dozens of periodicals, and in numerous memoirs, this book provides novel and thought-provoking insight into the intersection of state power, national/ethnic identity, and leisure activites. Summing up: recommended.
*CHOICE*

Well-written ... a rich monograph that marks a milestone in football research ... a valuable foundation given to the facts, perspectives and suggestions as well as material for expansion, deepening and reorientation.
*H-Soz-Kult (Bloomsbury translation)*

Enriched with vignettes, literary descriptions of sceneries and stadiums and personal impressions, and depicting legacies and leftovers of the Yugoslav past across the post-Yugoslav space, Richard Mills takes us to a fascinating journey through the world of the not always beautiful game. This long-awaited monograph is a brilliantly written and in-depth historical analysis based on the diversity of primary and secondary sources and, as such, it fulfils all expectations.
*Reviews in History*