Think about the popularity of FIFA the next time you see a 10-year old wearing the jersey of a team that plays in Spain. The billions of dollars in endorsements, the world-famous players it produces and the rabid passion of its fans have sustained the power of an organization that has produced the highest-paid team Athlete (Christiano Ronaldo, $80 million dollars: via Forbes) and the highest valued team (Real Madrid, $3.4 billion dollars: Via Forbes). The next World Cup, held in Qatar, will cost approximately $200 billion dollars. Many have asked: How does such a small country, with no soccer culture to speak of, get awarded a World Cup? As a country with no press freedom and lax worker protections, reporters believe that one laborer dies every two days as a result of World Cup Construction (Washington Post: The Human Toll of FIFA’s Corruption).
Soccer is a widely popular sport with fans in almost every continent. It’s beauty lies in its simplicity: A round ball and a few players formed into two teams. Played in dusty alleyways, concrete playgrounds, deserts that can be imagined as a pitch, expansive fields and indoors, soccer can be played anywhere. With hard work and talent, it can be a way to immense richness for anyone alive. As its popularity grows in the United States, our understanding of how organizations work can go a little further with the following books and DVDs. If you are interested in international organizations, sports, the developing world and international relations, pick up these books and DVDs from the Library: