Showing titles in Sports

It's the biggest sporting competition on Earth. A four-yearly chance for our greatest footballers to realise their ultimate dream. A month-long spectacle that's watched by billions. But the inaugural World Cup, held in Uruguay in 1930, was semi-professional, poorly attended and haphazardly organized—so how did it become a bonanza of multinational sponsorship, dubious ethics and shadowy characters, and the ultimate stage for football's greatest drama? Simon Kuper is one of very few people to have attended every World Cup since 1990.

'A tragic age and a tragic character, both seemingly compelled to destroy themselves...a chilling reminder of how little control we have over our fates' Damon Hill 'One of the greatest motor racing stories' Nick Mason 'Timely, vivid and enthralling … it’s unputdownable’ Miranda Seymour...

Sam Warburton OBE was not only a titan of Welsh rugby but an icon of the game. Having represented his country as a player and team captain at all junior levels, he propelled himself to international attention in 2011 when named as the youngest ever captain of Wales for the Rugby World Cup. Despite his tender age, Sam's immense displays for club and country were recognised still further in April 2013, when, at just 24, he was named the Lions' captain for the extraordinary 2013 tour to Australia. 

Mourinho is both a sumptuous celebration of The Special One's managerial career so far, and an enigmatic insight into his unique brand of football wisdom and philosophy. In the legendary manager's very first audiobook, and in his own images and captions, José Mourinho charts the peaks and troughs of the opening 15 years of what has been a stellar rise to the summit of the global game.

A hugely entertaining career autobiography from a true legend of Welsh rugby and a genuine cult figure. In rugby there are the Flash Harrys and the Glory Boys: the fly-halves who run, kick and dazzle; the scrum-halves who nip and dart; the wingers who step and glide. These are the players who get the crowd on their feet, who set stadiums abuzz. But they only get to do these things because other, less glorified figures do all of the donkey work. Adam Jones is one such figure.

You might run for fitness. You might run for speed. But ultimately, running is about much more than the physical act itself. It is about the challenges we face in life, and how we measure up to them. It is about companionship, endurance, ambition, hope, conviction, determination, self-respect and inspiration.

For more than 20 years, Garry Kasparov dominated the world of chess. As the youngest ever undisputed world champion, known for confounding his opponents at every move and breaking record after record, Kasparov was asked the same question time and time again: what makes a champion? Drawing on a wealth of revealing and instructive stories, from the most intense moments of his greatest games to the world-changing decisions of history's greatest strategists, Kasparov reveals the strategic ways of thinking that always give a player - in the game of life as well as chess - the edge. 

It’s Messi vs Ronaldo, it’s Catalonia vs Castilla. It’s the nation against the state, freedom fighters vs Franco’s fascists. It’s majestic goals and mesmerising skills, red cards and bench brawls. It’s the best two teams on the planet going face to face and toe to toe. It’s more...

An immersive memoir about a groundbreaking surfing career, and a stunning portrait of Ireland as one of the world’s most captivating big-wave surfing destinations. Born and raised in Bundoran, with the waves of the west coast of Ireland breaking at his doorstep, Richie Fitzgerald was moulded...

On 22 July 2012 Bradley Wiggins became the first British man ever to win the Tour de France. In an instant, 'Wiggo' became a national hero. Ten days later, having swapped his yellow jersey for the colours of Team GB, he won Olympic gold in the time trial, adding to his previous six medals to become the nation's most decorated Olympian of all time. Outspoken, honest, intelligent and fearless, Wiggins has been hailed as the people’s champion.

"Gripping . . . the narrative is smooth and immediate, almost effortless in its detail, if occasionally breathless, like a good fast run . . ." --The New York Times Book Review Visionary American running coach Bob Larsen assembled a mismatched team of elite California runners . . . the start of...

No player has been more synonymous with the glory years of Manchester United Football Club over the past two decades than right-back Gary Neville. An Old Trafford regular since he attended his first match at the age of six, captain of the brilliant 1992 FA Youth Cup-winning team that became known as 'Fergie's Fledglings', outspoken representative of MUFC, Neville is the ultimate one-club man. He has been at the heart of it all, and he is telling it all.

The explosive new book from Britain’s leading investigative biographer, Tom Bower As one of the most famous and influential couples in the world, David and Victoria Beckham have attained iconic status. The ultimate power couple have together built a multi-billion-dollar global brand. For...

The inside story of the iconic England Captain's formative years ⭐ ⭐ ⭐ ⭐ ⭐ 'Brilliant - a real page turner' ⭐ ⭐ ⭐ ⭐ ⭐ 'A great present for a keen cricketer' ⭐ ⭐ ⭐ ⭐ ⭐ 'An excellent read - five stars' Fiery, combative, gladiatorial - Ben Stokes plays the game hard...

Carroll Shelby wasn’t born to run. He was born to race - some of the fastest cars ever to tear up a speedway. The exciting new feature film Ford v Ferrari - starring Matt Damon as Shelby and Christian Bale as fellow racer Ken Miles - immortalizes the small-town Texas boy who won the notorious Le Mans 24-hour endurance challenge and changed the face of auto racing with the legendary Shelby Cobra. But there’s much more to his high-velocity, history-making story.

THE MUST-READ AUTOBIOGRAPHY OF THE MANCHESTER UNITED LEGEND AND MANAGER Michael Carrick was the heartbeat of Manchester United. The player who made them tick A talent that was formed in the famous Wallsend Boys Club and honed by some of the world's most revered managers, including Harry Redknapp...

Eben Etzebeth is die Springbokrugbyspeler wat al die meeste toetswedstryde in Suid-Afrikaanse rugbygeskiedenis gespeel het. Met hom in die span was die Bokke vir twee agtereenvolgende Wêreldbekers onoorwinlik. In hierdie eerlike vertelling deel Eben sy aangrypende reis van ‘n Afrikaanse laaitie van Goodwood tot wêreldkampioen.

Tom “The Albatross” and Luke “The Highland Oak” Stoltman are the world's strongest brothers. Between them, they've won everything there is to win in the mighty world of Strongman. Tom can deadlift a 430kg bar to hip height, equivalent to about seven washing machines. Luke isn't far behind. Yet for the Stoltmans, being strong is about more than pure muscle. It's about overcoming adversity. And it's about honoring their biggest fan: their mother, who died in 2016 leaving the family devastated.

For three extraordinary seasons at Bayern Munich, Marti Perarnau was given total access around the German super club - to its players, its backroom staff, its board members and, above all, its manager, Pep Guardiola. In the follow-up to his critically acclaimed account of Guardiola's first full season at Bayern, Pep Confidential, Perarnau now lifts the lid on the Catalan's whole tenure in Bavaria.

Bloomsbury presents Swimmingly: Adventures in Water by Vassos Alexander, read by Vassos Alexander, Nathalie Buscombe and Simon Darwen 'A hugely enjoyable love letter to swimming and open water adventures' – Sophie Raworth Sports and Virgin Radio Breakfast Show presenter Vassos Alexander found...