Book Recommendation: 'Soccernomics'

So the full title is Soccernomics: Why England Loses, Why Germany and Brazil Win, and Why the U.S., Japan, Australia, Turkey--and Even Iraq--Are Destined to Become the Kings of the World's Most Popular Sport.

I will fully admit that I am merely halfway through the book but it's an amazing read for any economics, soccer, or sports fan in general. Written by Simon Kuper and Stefan Szymanski, the book takes a new- age, data driven look at the world's most popular game. In a sport where numbers and data has traditionally been ignored in favor of gut instinct and raw ability, an astute case is made for the refinement of the beautiful game. I can only do it so much justice before I simply say go buy it immediately.

Kuper is one of the world's leading writers on soccer. We lives in Paris and writes a weekly column for the Financial Times.

Szymanski is a Professor of Economics at Cass Business School in London and is a world renowned economist.