Café Futebol
Authoritarianism
Franco’s own goal – how Spain refused to play the USSR in 1960
Football’s Elbe Moment: Dynamo Kyiv’s 1969 Tour of the United States
On April 25, 1945, nearly six years after the bloodiest war in human history began [...]
The Anschluss Match and the Martyrdom of Matthias Sindelar
In footballing circles, the term Anschluss Match generally refers to one of the most shameful [...]
Glorious Failures: Hungary’s Golden Team
This is part one of a three-part series. The Glorious Failure Phenomenon As a rule, [...]
Cabeza Mágica – The King of Ecuador
When one talks about the rich history of Latin American football, it can quite safely [...]
Franco’s own goal – how Spain refused to play the USSR in 1960
They couldn’t believe it. The decision made no sense. Why was their own government standing [...]
The End of History and the Demise of East German Football
This is Part 2 of a 4 part series. To read Part 1, click here [...]
The End of History: The 1990 World Cup
This is Part 1 of a two part series In the midst of the 1989 [...]
European Cup: Early Iberian Successes
This is Part 1 of a 3 part series The eventual appearance of a universal [...]
Three Points for a Win – Additional Data and Charts
In this section, you can find an overview to my calculations and download all of [...]
Antagonism
Without antagonism, there would be no football. The two teams facing off on a pitch [...]
Modernity
Though here at Café Futebol our focus is the historic interaction of football with the [...]
Authoritarianism
In spite of widespread willful denial and ignorance of reality, sport and politics are inextricably [...]
Latin America’s Futebol Arte vs Futebol Força dichotomy at the 2014 World Cup
For the first time in World Cup history a European side triumphed on Latin American [...]
Barrilete Cósmico: Malvinas, Maradona, Argentina & England
The scoreline is familiar, as is the fateful date, but surely the title for this [...]
Futebol Arte vs Futebol Força : the Latin American Football Debate
When we think of Brazilian Football there is a strong tendency to fall back on deep-rooted [...]
Myth Busting: Does Playing the Second Leg at Home Actually Matter?
The Myth Most football fan will tell you that when it comes to double-legged knockout [...]
Pinochet, the Cold War, and the Most Pathetic Match Ever Played
November 21, 1973. Estadio Nacional. Santiago. The match to determine the final participant of the [...]
The Hungarian ‘Golden Team’: How creativity, joy and self-expression flourished under authoritarianism
From a Western European perspective, the Hungarian ‘golden team’ of the 1950s can seem to [...]
Is a Red Card Ever Worth It? The Data Says Yes
Since its inception in 1970, the red card has come to signify the most brutal [...]
Research Roundup Part 1 – The Best Sub Strategy, Will Financial Fair Play Ruin Man City, and Why You Shouldn’t Always Fire Your Coach
Welcome to the first installment of a new Café Futebol series – The Research Roundup. [...]
Why ‘Three Points for a Win’ is a Loss for Football — A Closer Look Into One of the Most Important Rule Changes in Football History
An Introduction to Incentives Ask an economist how to solve a problem, and he’ll tell [...]