Against the Elements: The Eruption of Icelandic Football

Iceland's surprising success in football, despite its small population and location on the edge of the Arctic circle, is explored in Matt McGinn's book "Against the Elements." McGinn conducted 50 exclusive interviews with key protagonists to uncover the factors that contributed to Iceland's success, including an Icelandic Viking mentality, smallness as an advantage, and a potential template for other countries to follow. The book also provides a travelogue of Iceland's World Cup campaign, exploring the people, places, and values of the nation that produced the astonishing team.

Format: Paperback / softback
Length: 256 pages
Publication date: 27 July 2020
Publisher: Pitch Publishing Ltd

Against the Elements is an enthralling account of football's most captivating underdog story. With a population of just 350,000, Iceland stunned the sporting world when it went toe-to-toe with the elite at Euro 2016 and the 2018 World Cup. So how was such a tiny nation, situated on the edge of the Arctic circle, able to take on the giants of world football? Matt McGinn draws on 50 exclusive interviews with the key protagonists to unpick how it happened. Does an Icelandic Viking mentality exist? Can smallness be an advantage? Is there a template for other countries to follow? McGinn experienced Iceland's World Cup campaign in different parts of the country - from five days spent on a fishing trawler, to Iceland's bustling capital of Reykjavík, to the jagged volcanic island of Heimaey. Part travelogue, part thematic investigation, Against the Elements searches for the truth behind the Iceland football team's remarkable, unprecedented rise, bringing to life the people, places, and values of the nation that produced this astonishing team.

Against the Elements is an enthralling account of football's most captivating underdog story. With a population of just 350,000, Iceland stunned the sporting world when it went toe-to-toe with the elite at Euro 2016 and the 2018 World Cup. So how was such a tiny nation, situated on the edge of the Arctic circle, able to take on the giants of world football? Matt McGinn draws on 50 exclusive interviews with the key protagonists to unpick how it happened. Does an Icelandic Viking mentality exist? Can smallness be an advantage? Is there a template for other countries to follow? McGinn experienced Iceland's World Cup campaign in different parts of the country - from five days spent on a fishing trawler, to Iceland's bustling capital of Reykjavík, to the jagged volcanic island of Heimaey. Part travelogue, part thematic investigation, Against the Elements searches for the truth behind the Iceland football team's remarkable, unprecedented rise, bringing to life the people, places, and values of the nation that produced this astonishing team.

Weight: 344g
Dimension: 138 x 215 x 24 (mm)
ISBN-13: 9781785317200