With FIFA's announcement that Massachusetts is a host location for seven games for this year's FIFA World Cup 2026, football fever is taking over! Matches begin June 11. A reminder--you can't walk to Gillette, aka Boston Stadium, from Boston--or Worcester! Check for information and updates on the official website.
Whether you're a new soccer fan caught up in the hype, a die-hard "football" fanatic who has been following FIFA for years, an armchair referee, or just enjoy playing EA SPORTS FC 26, check out this list of nonfiction titles about what we call soccer, in celebration of Boston's hosting of the FIFA World Cup 2026. For those of you with friends and family who will be obsessed with soccer from mid-June through July 9, there's some suggested soccer fiction to calmly read while everyone else ise jumping up and down screaming at the television.
Nonfiction
Information, History, and Biographies
A Beautiful Shame: One Team's Fight for Survival in a New Era of College Sports by Ryan Swanson
This book follows the University of New Mexico men's soccer team as they fight for survival in a new era of college athletics, providing a firsthand perspective on the impact of changes such as the transfer portal, conference realignments, and universities scrambling to stay compliant on athletes from smaller sports and institutions.
Big Fan: Two Friends, 81,589 Miles, and the Wild, Wonderful Sports We Love by Michael Schur and Joe Posnanski
Mike Schur and Joe Posnanski travel the world in a hilarious and heartwarming celebration of fans and the things they love: baseball, basketball, chess, darts, football, futbol, Indigenous North American stickball, pickleball, WWE, Taylor Swift, Star Wars, and more.
An epic tale of war, revolution, economic crisis, and social transformation told through the story of twelve historic soccer games, with a gallery of unexpected heroes, thwarted tragedies, and stunning, world-changing results.
How to Watch Soccer Like a Genius: What Architects, Stuntwomen, Paleoanthropologists, and Computer Scientists Reveal about the World's Game by Nick Greene
A brilliant and entertaining deconstruction of the most popular sport in the world, just in time for the 2026 World Cup in North America, from the bestselling author of How to Watch Basketball Like a Genius.
The Long Game: U.S. Men's Soccer and Its Savage, Four-Decade Journey to the Top, or Thereabouts by Leander Schaerlaeckens
The gripping account of the U.S. men's national soccer team's winding saga from obscurity to the global stage as they stand on the brink of a seminal World Cup in 2026
Masters of Modern Soccer: How the World's Best Play the Twenty-First-Century Game by Grant Wahl
The forefront Sports Illustrated soccer journalist and best-selling author of The Beckham Experiment profiles master players in every key position to reveal how elite athletes and coaches strategize on and off the field and perform in high-pressure game situations.
The Messi Effect: How the Global Legend Changed the Future of American Soccer by Paul Tenorio
The soccer writer for The Atlantic draws on his numerous high-ranking sources inside Inter Miami, American soccer, and overseas to bring readers behind the scenes and chronicle the last act of Lionel Messi.
Relagated: One American's Pints-and-Pies Journey From the Top to the Bottom of English Football by Todd Smith
Looking for a change and a chance to write about something that really matters to him, Smith takes off for a multi-month, immersive expedition through the world and culture of English football. A heartwarming account featuring pints, meat pies, a rainbow of team scarves and banners, and some very colorful slang, Relegated is the story of a man looking to transform himself while discovering the true meaning of English football.
The Rise of Major League Soccer: Building a Global Giant by Rick Burton & Norm O'Reilly
experienced sports business experts Rick Burton and Norm O'Reilly dig into the slow but sure growth of Major League Soccer in North America and the advent of major European teams like Manchester United, Real Madrid, Chelsea, FC Barcelona, Arsenal, Inter Milan, Bayern Munich, Liverpool, and others attracting huge fan bases in the United States. For soccer enthusiasts, sports business professionals, and anyone curious about the future of American sports, this book is an essential read that captures MLS's journey to becoming a global powerhouse.
Soccer for Dummies by Tom Dunmore
Learn how soccer got to be the #1 most popular sport in the world. Get up to speed on the world's best leagues, teams, and players. Discover tips on playing and coaching, plus fun soccer facts and resources for learning more"
Soccernomics (2026 World Cup Edition): Why European Men and American Women Usually Win--And American Men Don't (Yet) by Simon Kuper & Stefan Syzmanski
Soccernomics is a revolutionary way of looking at soccer that has helped to change how some of the world's biggest clubs are run. Using insights and analogies from economics, statistics, psychology, and business to cast a new and entertaining light on how the game works, experts Simon Kuper and Stefan Szymanski reveal the often surprisingly counterintuitive truths about soccer.
After attending every game since 1990, World Cup Fever is Kuper's journey to find the heart of soccer, through the nine tournaments he's experienced first-hand--from watching matches in half-empty stands during Italia 1990 (a tournament that at times felt like a village fete) to witnessing the French triumph at home in 1998; South Africa's national dream in 2010; and the troubling legacy of Qatar in 2022. Told on the pitch, in the stands, in the pubs, and on the streets, this is the story of how soccer has changed the world.
Fiction
Historical, Contemporary & Romance
The Abstinence Teacher by Tom Perrotta
Teaching human sexuality from a perspective that information and pleasure are top priorities, divorced mom Ruth Ramsey butts heads with the local soccer coach, a divorced former addict who became an evangelical Christian after hitting rock bottom.
Britt-Marie Was Here by Fredrik Backman
Britt-Marie is 63 when she walks away from her loveless marriage and takes a job as a caretaker for a soon-to-be-demolished rec center in the tiny, depressing Swedish town of Borg, where among other things, she coaches a youth soccer team.
Death of the Soccer God by Dimitry Elias Léger
A global soccer star’s epic ride to the 1950 World Cup places him in shooting distance of his dreams and his own death.
Everything For You by Chloe Liese 🌶️🌶️🌶️🌶️
Oliver Bergman is a beloved rising soccer star, all sunshine smiles and the heart of his team's spirit. In short: he's genetically designed to get under misanthropic, miserable Gavin's aggravated skin. Sick of their hostility, Coach gives them an ultimatum: put an end to their enmity or say goodbye to being captains. Forced to finally to lower their guards, Gavin and Oliver realize that they also have chemistry off the field, and it's fueled by something much more powerful than competition--an explosive attraction.
Mark Wolfe, a technical writer at a Pittsburgh cooperative, heads to England to help his struggling soccer scout half-brother locate a young African phenom known only as Godwin. Back in the states, the co-op's steady cofounder, Lakesha, deals with major work problems.
If Only You by Chloe Liese 🌶️🌶️🌶️
Ziggy Bergman is tired of being underestimated. Sure, she's the youngest player on the National Soccer team and the baby of the family, but that doesn't mean she still deserves to be treated like a kid. It's time for her angelic image to get a makeover. What better way to do that than hanging out with trouble incarnate and her brother's best friend, Sebastian Gauthier?
The Long Game by Elena Armas 🌶️🌶️🌶️🌶️
A disgraced soccer executive reluctantly enlists the help of a retired soccer star in coaching a children's team.
Recipe for Persuasion by Sonali Dev 🌶️🌶️🌶️
In this adaptation of Jane Austen's Persuasion, a chef partners with her celebrity soccer star--her first love--during a reality-show competition she hopes will save her restaurant.
Relationship Goals by Brittany Kelley 🌶️🌶️🌶️
Ted Lasso meets How to Lose a Guy in 10 Days in this steamy sports romance about an infamous star soccer player who is forced to fake date a Hollywood starlet, only to develop real feelings for her-just as she learns he was pretending and vows to get even.
The Striker by Ana Huang 🌶️🌶️🌶️🌶️
When legendary footballer Asher Donovan must be trained by former ballerina Scarlett DeBois, the sparks begin to fly.
Ordinarily the star of the Camden Roses is calm, cool, and collected, keeping his club relevant with his prowess in the midfield and his mighty left foot. But this season, the threats abound: First a midseason injury sidelines him when his team needs him most. When a recruit is called up to fill in, Oliver fears he'll be replaced. Oliver immediately finds confident, eager Leonardo irritating, but eventually begins to see him as a friend--and then, to his mounting horror, as something more. As the season heats up, a lot more than football hangs in the balance.
Unseen Academicals by Terry Pratchett
The wizards of Unseen University in the ancient city of Ankh-Morpork must win a football match, without using magic, so they're in the mood for trying everything else. As the match approaches, four lives are entangled and changed forever.
When Grumpy Met Sunshine by Charlotte Stein 🌶️🌶️🌶️🌶️
Working with curvy, cheery, cute ghostwriter Mabel Willicker on his memoir, grumpy ex-footballer Alfie Harding, when their business arrangement is mistaken for a budding romance, convinces her to be in a fake relationship for the public, but their undeniable chemistry between them leads to something real.
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Note: The chili peppers denote the steaminess, or spice level, of a book's romantic/intimate elements; visit https://www.romance.io/steamrating for the key.
