Claremont, Calif. (January 6, 2016)—Writer David Goldblatt, a visiting professor at Pitzer College this spring, won the William Hill Sports Book of the Year for his book The Game of Our Lives: The Meaning and Making of English Football on November 26, 2015. The same week, the Foreign Press Association in London crowned Goldblatt’s article, “The Prison Where Murders Play for Manchester United,” its Sports Story of the Year.
Described as one of the most prestigious literary sports writing prize in the world, the annual William Hill Sports Book of the Year recognizes excellence in sports writing. According to the book publisher William Hill, the judges called Goldblatt’s book “an exceptional winner” for its examination of English football and how it reflects the nation as a whole.
Goldblatt’s article “The Prison Where Murderers Play for Manchester United,” published by The Guardian in May, is a long, literary piece about Luzira Prison in Uganda—an institution that developed its own football league and became “a model for the transformative power of the beautiful game.” Interim Dean of Faculty Nigel Boyle arranged for Goldblatt’s visit to Luzira Prison, where Boyle and Pitzer professors Lako Tongun and Andre Wakefield have taught over the last two summers.
Goldblatt is teaching three courses at Pitzer, offering students the opportunity to explore the history and politics of world soccer, examine the Olympics or delve into politics in the United Kingdom. An international print and broadcast journalist, Goldblatt is the author of Futebol Nation: A Footballing History Of Brazil, The Ball is Round: A Global History of Soccer and How to Watch the Olympics: The Essential Guide to the Rules, Statistics, Heroes, and Zeroes of Every Sport.
