Game Over: How Politics Has Turned the Sports World Upside Down

By Robert Edelman

Sportscaster Howard Cosell dubbed it rule number one of the jockocracy”: sports and politics just don’t mix. But in Game Over, celebrated alt-sportswriter Dave Zirin proves once and for all that politics has breached the modern sports arena with a vengeance. From the NFL lockout and the role of soccer in the Arab Spring to the Penn State sexual abuse scandals and Tim Tebow’s on-field genuflections, this timely and hard-hitting new book from the conscience of American sportswriting” (The Washington Post) reveals how our most important debates about class, race, religion, sex, and the raw quest for political power are played out both on and off the field.

Game Over offers new insights and analysis of headline-grabbing sports controversies, exploring the shady side of the NCAA, the explosive 2011 MLB All-Star Game, and why the Dodgers crashed and burned. It covers the fascinating struggles of gay and lesbian athletes to gain acceptance, female athletes to be more than sex symbols, and athletes everywhere to assert their collective bargaining rights as union members. Zirin also illustrates the ways in which athletes are once again using their exalted platforms to speak out and reclaim sports from the corporate interests that have taken it hostage. In Game Over, he cheers the victories but also reflects on how far we have yet to go. Combining brilliant set pieces with a sobering overview of today’s sports scene in Zirin’s take-no-prisoners style, Game Over is a must read for anyone, sports fan or not, interested in understanding how sports reflect and shape society—and why the stakes have never been higher.

• Language: English
• Publisher: The New Press
• Release date: Jan 29, 2013
• ISBN: 9781595588425

Robert Edelman

Lisa G. Materson is associate professor of history at the University of California at Davis.

Reviews for Game Over

[delphica · Rating: 4 out of 5 stars]

This is going to be one of those books that I enjoyed a lot, however my comments are going to sound like a long list of complaints. It's not so much complaining as it is a recognition of the fact that the book raises a lot of issues that make interesting conversational topics.Each chapter of this book deals with a different aspect of the intersection of sports and society, with (as the title says) an emphasis on politics. A few quibbles on that later. However, most were previously published as articles, and that shows. They don't feel like they were written with a unified purpose, because they weren't. You can also pick up on some subtle changes in tone -- I like Zirin's sports writing a lot, and when he writes for a sporty audience, he includes a lot of witty little sports asides. He dials this way down when writing for a more general audience, understandably. I wish this book had been a little more coherent. It's not clear to me what Zirin thinks people -- either fans, or players or other people directly involved, should do. I kept waiting for the call to action.One thing I thought was hilarious is that he describes the Green Bay Packers ownership model and strongly advocates for it to be re-introduced into professional sports (he probably could have better explained the rules that would need to change to enable that). He sets out some good arguments ... but he also doesn't seem to realize that this model is already every fan's fantasy. We're familiar with the concept.I like that he hates the NCAA, and most specifically, it's refusal to entertain the idea of compensating student-athletes. This is one of those issues where over the years, I went from being very against compensation, to feeling neutral about it, to really strongly supporting it and being appalled that they're not.I can understand why publishers wanted to include it, but I thought the chapter on the Penn State scandal doesn't quite belong here. That's not about politics, that's about crime. That should be in a book that also looks at why Ben Roethlisberger is still playing football. And this is a real nitpick, but social justice and politics are used very interchangeably throughout, and that's really not right. Obviously, it's easy to do because there's so much overlap, but there are some nuances about social justice movements and activism that are important to understand.And in closing, I don't love the book's title. The game isn't over, that's the whole point. It's not as if politics shut down athletics. I'm sure there's a sports phrase that would work just as well and be more appropriate to the subject matter.