Soccer’s World Cup is upon us, and the Madison College Libraries invite you to play along. Go to https://libguides.madisoncollege.edu/trivia to answer a trivia quiz about the World Cup and/or fill out a bracket to pick the winners, and you could win a prize for either or both.
Why a World Cup contest, you ask? Well, we thought, as we’re heading into what can be a very stressful time of the year preparing for final projects and exams as well as the holidays that a little diversionary fun might be welcome. That, and the fact that there are several soccer fans on the staff. The World Cup is played every four years and usually in the summer, but this year it is being played now because they wanted to avoid the extreme heat possibilities of summer in the host nation Qatar. The dates for this year’s Cup are from Nov. 21 through Dec. 18.
Want to find out a little more about the countries participating and their odds of winning? Peruse our EBSCO databases for thousands of articles from national and international sources about who are the favorites in this year’s World Cup and why.
Over in our library catalog, a subject search on soccer yields a plethora of print books, e-books, videos, e-videos, articles and more analyzing the sport and its significance to individual countries or the world at large.
Some books in the library collection you might want to check out include: “More Than Just a Game: Soccer vs Apartheid,” “Soccer in Sun and Shadow,” “Africa United: Soccer, Passion, Politics, and the First World Cup in Africa,” “Spartak Moscow,” “Baghdad FC,” “The Miracle of Castel di Sangro,” “Fever Pitch” and “Offside: Soccer and American Exceptionalism.”
If videos are more your thing, check out “Rudi y Cursi” or “Afsaid=Offside.” “Afsaid=Offside” is a great little 2006 Iranian film about a group of female fans who sneak into Tehran’s Azadi Stadium to watch a World Cup qualifying game despite a ban on female spectators.
You can also stream from our Films on Demand database the documentary “Qatar: Slaves to the Beautiful Game,” about Qatar’s bid to get the World Cup and the very questionable human rights practices that were used to build all the facilities. Films on Demand includes many other titles about soccer from different world perspectives.
Enjoy the World Cup and please consider joining our bracket contest!