The Run of Play is a blog about the wonder and terror of soccer.
We left the window open during a match in October 2007 and a strange wind blew into the room.
Now we walk the forgotten byways of football with a lonely tread, searching for the beautiful, the bewildering, the haunting, and the absurd.
EDITOR
Brian Phillips
CONTRIBUTING WRITERS
Zach Dundas, Fredorrarci, Alan Jacobs, Supriya Nair, Richard Whittall
Thirteen World Cup Theses
Alan Jacobs on Spain’s style, Sneijder’s luck, and the irrelevance of total football.
Against the Underdog
Gareth Simpson on the strange feeling of rooting for the favorites.
Time Can Do So Much
The World Cup quarterfinals, the most delirious two days in soccer.
Tap-in and Taboo
A thought experiment featuring Luis Suárez.
How to Win the World Cup
The answer is not “be ruled by a dictator.”
Legacy and Lionel Messi
Is it impossible to be a great soccer player?
Anatomizing England
Alan Jacobs on chance and the identity of the England team.
On Happiness
USA-Algeria and the simple, amazing elation of the fan.
The Best of All Possible Worlds
The futures that raced past during USA-Algeria, and what the late goal meant.
