Champions League Final Today

The Champions League Final is today. What is the Champions League? It is a nine month soccer tournament contested by the best teams from just about every European country. Today’s final pits two teams owned by foreign billionaires striving for the title of “European champions.” Manchester United—owned by American billionaire Malcolm Glazer—is looking for their third Champions League trophy, while Roman Ibramovich’s Chelsea is looking for their first. Both teams boast squads filled with international superstars accustomed to the great stages of world soccer: the World Cup, the Premier League, and now the Champions League Final. A win guarantees a massive financial windfall

Today’s match will be an intriguing battle between a silky and attractive Manchester United and a burly—yet equally effective—Chelsea. The ace in the hole, might be the location: Moscow. Considering Chelsea’s owner is the richest Russian, fate and power might fall in their favor If fate conspires to bite you with the soccer bug, the Austin Public Library has a variety of books that discuss soccer’s history and its link with social and political forces around the world.

Soccer in Sun and Shadow

Brilliant Orange: the Neurotic Genius of Dutch Soccer

How Soccer Explains the World

The Thinking Fan’s Guide to the World Cup

Winning At All Costs: A Scandalous History of Italian Soccer

A Season with Verona

The following two titles have been purchased by the Austin Public Library and will arrive shortly. They are both worth the wait.

Soccer Against the Enemy

The Ball is Round

Oh yeah, the match is on ESPN2 at 1:30pm.