Aidan Williams

"HERE WE GO!": the lowdown on "football journalist" Fabrizio Romano The Italian "influencer" who has never worked as a real journalist, has 100m+ followers on social media and leverages them for cash. This is a tale about modern sports media

"HERE WE GO!": the lowdown on "football journalist" Fabrizio Romano

sportingintelligence832.substack.com/p/here-we-go...

More 1986 World Cup magic...

@outsidewrite.bsky.social
Front cover for my forthcoming book. Hopefully released later on this year.

¡Viva México! 🇲🇽
We're off to the World Cup.

We have to earn the right, of course.
To know the World Cup is to know that the qualifiers are a part of the World Cup itself.

Those tales of glory and failure, the sliding doors moments one which fortune turned.

The epic adventure begins...

Euro 1984: The Greatest Tournament You Never Saw Buy Euro 1984: The Greatest Tournament You Never Saw First Edition by Aidan Williams (ISBN: 9781801507035) from Amazon's Book Store. Everyday low prices and free delivery on eligible orders.

Looking for that Christmas gift for your football loving person?

Something with a certain je ne sais quoi?

Something with a dose of magique?

Look no further...

amzn.eu/d/4lFuRa4

Cristiano Ronaldo able to play at World Cup despite red card against Republic of Ireland Cristiano Ronaldo will be able to play for Portugal in their opening World Cup game despite his red card against the Republic of Ireland.

Well I, for one, am astonished...

www.bbc.co.uk/sport/footba...

Good stuff. My next, currently about 25% of the way through, is going back a bit further. It's called 1938: The World Cup on the edge of World War.
Sport, politics and history combined.

Wow, impressively prolific.

Thank you very much Mark. Really appreciate the kind words.
What are the book ideas you're working on?

Personally, I would say that the addition of Fernandez added greater balance to the team, allowing the other three to do their thing all the better. It only fell into place shortly before Euro 1984, but once it fully clicked in that Euros, I feel it helped France perform at a level beyond that of 82

Well, would you look at that...

This here book of mine is on a special offer currently, with a whopping 43% off.

If ever there was a time to take the plunge, and then celebrate like a last gasp Platini winner, this is it 🇫🇷

Uefa Euro 1984

amzn.eu/d/eT5taN5

Delighted to launch my latest book, THE SLUM SPORT - the story of the 1985/86 Football League season, as told by those who were there.

"It truly is a cracking read" - Barry Davies MBE

Out mid-October. To pre-order your copy please go to: www.curtis-sport.com/all-programm...

The Sting, for me.

Revert the World Cup to 32 teams.

But also introduce a global play-in competition to expand on the intercontinental playoffs.

Have 16 or even 32 teams in that, like a mini World Cup. That way, more nations get something beyond the norm and some get to reach the big finals if they're good enough

Award penalties for any denial of a goalscoring opportunity, no matter where on the field the offence took place.

A Scandinavian top division?

A Benelux league?

A Balkan league?

A Mediterranean league featuring Italy, Croatia, Greece, Turkey perhaps?

Incendiary but strong.

I'd take this thought and go further. Multi national leagues across Europe would perhaps strengthen many teams.

How about a league of all top Spanish, Portuguese, and French clubs together, with national leagues feeding into it?

How about Austria, Switzerland, and Germany?

And while I'm at it, merge Asian and Oceanian federations too.

Merge concacaf and conmebol.
Copa America then becomes a tournament requiring qualifiers, but bri is meaningful competition to the stronger teams from both, and chance to develop for the rest.

World cup qualifying becomes more meaningful too.

Selling fast: Francesco Totti and Philosophies.

First up, Totti in all his glory, covering the highs and lows of his Roma and Italy career. Just look at that cover! Alongside it comes our exploration of the philosophies and systems that made football.

thesefootballtimes.shop/mag

Essentially increasing the prospect of a mid table Championship team being promoted. May be unlikely, sure, but would be possible.

The current set up is fine.

We Are The Great North Run | GNR25 | Poem by George Caulkin YouTube video by GreatRunTV

We are The Great North Run and every one of us is a story.

#GreatNorthRun #WeAreTheGNR

www.youtube.com/watch?v=Q-rZ...

Love that quote. Magnificent

Gaza's Vanishing Stadiums. The Football Story That Is Being Ignored. YouTube video by The Pitch Inspection

FIFA has multiple obvious grounds to suspend or expel the Israel Football Association and in doing so apply meaningful pressure to stop the slaughter in Gaza. It has done nothing. Great piece of work here from @thepitchinspection.bsky.social www.youtube.com/watch?v=cfjD...

And so we reach the end of our trip back to Euro 84. The excellent @aidanwilliams74.bsky.social & Jonathan O’Brien take us through a nervy final, it’s legacy and just how authoritative a performance it was from France & Platini.

podcasts.apple.com/gb/podcast/n...

open.spotify.com/episode/4dzs...

The greatest European Championship game of all time? @aidanwilliams74.bsky.social and Jonathan O’Brien run the rule over an incredible night when France and Portugal met in Marseille.

Out in the usual places now!

open.spotify.com/episode/1VZX...

podcasts.apple.com/gb/podcast/n...

MODULE 8: YBTAHOAB Origin Podcast Lord Beaverbrook, Clement Attlee, Lady Diana, your boys took a hell of a beating

Lord Nelson, Lord Beaverbrook, Sir Winston Churchill, Sir Anthony Eden...etc

It's 1981. Join @scraggy74.bsky.social and @themagicofthecup.bsky.social for England's World Cup qualifier in Norway

The story of our 'album' title track ... yourboystookahellofabeating.substack.com/p/module-8-y...

Is this the greatest tournament group of all time? 23 goals, drama to the very end, the emergence of 3 young talents, a disgrace that derailed the Belgians and, of course, Platini.

@aidanwilliams74.bsky.social guides us through

podcasts.apple.com/gb/podcast/n...

open.spotify.com/episode/53xC...

Part 2 of our Euro ‘84 series is available now in all the usual places as @aidanwilliams74.bsky.social & Rob Smyth wrap up the drama of the qualifiers. Italy’s gap year, Northern Ireland managing to beat West Germany twice and not qualify and Spain needing to beat Malta by 11 clear goals…

Our Euro ‘84 deep dive is underway with the story of the qualifiers that is as dramatic and remarkable as the finals themselves.

@aidanwilliams74.bsky.social joins Rob and Martyn to set the scene…

open.spotify.com/episode/3IrQ...

podcasts.apple.com/gb/podcast/n...