Ultra : the underworld of Italian football /
Jones, Tobias,
Ultra : the underworld of Italian football / Tobias Jones. - London : Head of Zeus, 2020. - xxvii, 401 pages, 8 unnumbered pages of plates : illustrations (black and white, and colour), map (black and white) ; 20 cm
Originally published: 2019.
Includes bibliographical references and filmography.
Italy's ultras are the most organised and violent fans in European football. Many groups have evolved into criminal gangs, involved in ticket-touting, drug-dealing and murder. A cross between the Hells Angels and hooligans, they're often the foot-soldiers of the Mafia and have been instrumental in the rise of the far-right. But the purist ultras say that they are are insurgents fighting against a police state and modern football. Only amongst the ultras, they say, can you find belonging, community and a sacred concept of sport. They champion not just their teams, they say, but their forgotten suburbs and the dispossessed. Through the prism of the ultras Jones crafts a compelling investigation into Italian society and its favourite sport.
The Telegraph Sports Awards 2020 Football Book of the Year
9781786697370 (pbk.) : £9.99 No price
Soccer--Social aspects--Italy.
Soccer hooliganism--Italy.
Organized crime--Italy.
Fascism--Italy.
White supremacy movements--Italy.
Sport.
GV943.9.S64
796.3340945
Ultra : the underworld of Italian football / Tobias Jones. - London : Head of Zeus, 2020. - xxvii, 401 pages, 8 unnumbered pages of plates : illustrations (black and white, and colour), map (black and white) ; 20 cm
Originally published: 2019.
Includes bibliographical references and filmography.
Italy's ultras are the most organised and violent fans in European football. Many groups have evolved into criminal gangs, involved in ticket-touting, drug-dealing and murder. A cross between the Hells Angels and hooligans, they're often the foot-soldiers of the Mafia and have been instrumental in the rise of the far-right. But the purist ultras say that they are are insurgents fighting against a police state and modern football. Only amongst the ultras, they say, can you find belonging, community and a sacred concept of sport. They champion not just their teams, they say, but their forgotten suburbs and the dispossessed. Through the prism of the ultras Jones crafts a compelling investigation into Italian society and its favourite sport.
The Telegraph Sports Awards 2020 Football Book of the Year
9781786697370 (pbk.) : £9.99 No price
Soccer--Social aspects--Italy.
Soccer hooliganism--Italy.
Organized crime--Italy.
Fascism--Italy.
White supremacy movements--Italy.
Sport.
GV943.9.S64
796.3340945