Fully revised and updated, this is the ultimate guide to the “beautiful game” for any soccer fan who wants to discover everything there is to know about the biggest clubs of all time and World Cup winners, or brush up on their football skills and techniques.

Whether you are a keen player, a lifelong supporter, or an armchair football manager, this book illustrates every aspect of the most popular sport in the world.

The Soccer Book reveals the story behind the sport – from its history around the globe to the results of the 2023 Women's World Cup in Australia and New Zealand, and the build-up to the 2026 FIFA World Cup in North America.

Take a trip to “Planet Football” with this fantastic guide, including:

• The very latest facts and stats from all over the world
• Bold graphics that explore everything from team formations and attacking strategies to soccer shirts and the most iconic haircuts from soccer history
• The history of the sport, the rules of the game, key skills, the clubs, competitions, and records
• Special profiles that profile famous matches, celebrated stadiums, and much more

Step-by-step artworks and jargon-free text profile the roles of players, soccer kits and equipment, team formations, strategies, and individual skills, while maps, quotes, and statistics give you all of the key facts on national teams, famous club sides, and iconic players, as well as the greatest competitions around the world.

Packed with everything there is to know about the sport, this is the ultimate book for soccer fans everywhere – whether young or old.

About the Author

DK Publishing was founded in London in 1974 and is now the world's leading illustrated reference publisher and part of Penguin Random House, formed on July 1, 2013. DK publishes highly visual, photographic nonfiction for adults and children, and produces content for consumers in more than 87 countries and 62 languages, with offices in Delhi, London, Melbourne, Munich, New York, and Toronto.

DK's aim is to inform, enrich, and entertain readers of all ages, and everything DK publishes, whether print or digital, embodies the unique DK design approach. DK brings unrivaled clarity to a wide range of topics with a unique combination of words and pictures, put together to spectacular effect. 

It has a reputation for innovation in design for both print and digital products. DK's adult range spans travel—including the award-winning DK Eyewitness Travel Guides—history, science, nature, sport, gardening, cookery, and parenting.

DK's extensive children's list showcases a fantastic store of information for children, toddlers, and babies.

DK covers everything from animals and the human body, to homework help and craft activities, together with an impressive list of licensing titles, including the bestselling LEGObooks.

DK acts as the parent company for Alpha Books, publisher of the Idiot's Guides series and Prima Games, video gaming publishers, as well as the award-winning travel publisher Rough Guides.