At the beginning of the 20th century, soccer was widely accepted as the most popular sport in the western world. Starting in Britain in the 19th century but with roots going back to the late Middle Ages, it quickly spread from there to the rest of the world. Yet here was a game with strong traditional folk-roots; a game originally intended for urban working men. This text tells the story of the remarkable rise of a remarkable game—and the way it became the game of the masses across the globe.