David Goldblatt’s The Game of Our Lives has won the 2015 William Hill sports book of the year award.
Goldblatt’s work examines football’s place in British society, analysing the game’s economic impact and how it shapes urban identities in big cities and rural locations. He takes the £27,000 prize and was described by the judges as “an exceptional winner”.
Two Guardian writers were shortlisted and highly commended for their work. Andy Bull’s Speed Kings and Donald McRae’s A Man’s World were both selected on the six-book list by William Hill’s panel, which whittled down an original longlist of 14.
On receiving the award, Goldblatt said: “In the words of Sir Alex Ferguson: sports writing, bloody hell.” The chairman of the judging panel, John Gaustad, said: “This is a serious, insightful yet compellingly readable book on a subject that affects the lives of everyone in the country, be they football fans or not.
“Goldblatt looks at football through the prism of its economic, cultural and reputational effect on the UK, and pulls no punches in his conclusions. The Game of Our Lives will become required reading for anyone studying the history of late 20th and early 21st century Britain.”
The William Hill sports book of the year is regarded as the pinnacle industry award and first started in 1989. The judging panel comprised the retired footballer and former chairman of the Professional Footballers’ Association, Clarke Carlisle, the broadcasters John Inverdale and Danny Kelly, the journalist and author Hugh McIlvanney, and the columnist and author Alyson Rudd. James Riach
