Association Football: A Study in Figurational Sociology

This book presents a synthesis of the work on early football undertaken by the authors over the past two decades. It explores aspects of a figurational approach to sociology to examine the early development of football rules in the middle part of the nineteenth century. The book tests Dunning s status rivalry hypothesis to contest Harvey s view of football s development which stresses an influential sub-culture outside the public schools. Status Rivalry re-states the primacy of these latter institutions in the growth of football and without it the sport s story would remain skewed and unbalanced for future generations.