Among the Thugs

Bill Buford

Apr 2013 · Sold by Vintage

About this ebook

They have names like Barmy Bernie, Daft Donald, and Steamin' Sammy. They like lager (in huge quantities), the Queen, football clubs (especially Manchester United), and themselves. Their dislike encompasses the rest of the known universe, and England's soccer thugs express it in ways that range from mere vandalism to riots that terrorize entire cities. Now Bill Buford, editor of the prestigious journal Granta, enters this alternate society and records both its savageries and its sinister allure with the social imagination of a George Orwell and the raw personal engagement of a Hunter Thompson.

Ratings and reviews

An absolutely amazing read, "Among the Thugs" gives an intimate view of English football firms of the late 1980s and the camaraderie and casual violence that went hand in hand amongst those hardcore supporters. A must read for anyone interested in hooligan and/or ultra culture.

Very good and serious read. An intimate, informed portrait of football hooliganism from the inside. Unmissable for a certain swathe of football fans, readers, and historians.

Narrative documentary for any fan of soccer and any academic of sports history.

About the author

Bill Buford is a staff writer and the European correspondent for The New Yorker. He was the fiction editor of the magazine for eight years, from April 1995 to December 2002. Before that Bill edited Granta magazine for 16 years and, in 1989, became the publisher of Granta Books. He has edited three anthologies: The Best of Granta Travel, The Best of Granta Reportage, and The Granta Book of the Family. Bill is also the author of Among the Thugs, a highly personal nonfiction account of crowd violence and British soccer hooliganism.