Cameron Jones plays soccer not because he loves it, but because his dad believed he will one day earn a big prize: a college scholarship. When his father's job transfer takes him from the big city to a small-town team, Cameron thinks it might be his chance to take a step back from soccer. His new team is unorganized and his teammates seem uninterested in the discipline it takes to win. But maybe this new team is exactly what Cameron needs to make soccer fun again.

Cameron believes his move to an undisciplined, small-town team will provide the excuse he needs to quit playing soccer, but perhaps this new team is exactly what he needs to make the sport fun again.

St. Louis has been the heartbeat of American soccer for years, dominating in club, high school, and college soccer. To this day, St. Louis University has the most NCAA Division I men's soccer national championship titles. Yet, in 1996, when Major League Soccer kicked off its inaugural season, there was no team to represent the Gateway to the West. How did this happen? Author Shane Stay guides you through St. Louis soccer's journey, from its past to the present, including the launch of St. Louis CITY SC. The story will start 100 years in the past and follow the major achievements—and setbacks—of St. Louis soccer. Shane recounts not only the history of soccer at the club, high school, college, and professional levels, but he also provides some helpful hints for which are the best local attractions for soccer fans, and he even goes so far as to predict the future successes of St. Louis CITY SC. This is one book soccer fans will want to have on their shelves!

It's All in the Name explains the concept of Lexigrams and the uncanny magic they can unfold for self-knowledge. The author begins by introducing simple words and taking the reader on a journey that shows how much we can find the truth we are searching for is contained within the words we use every day. After offering a few rules to guide the Lexigram process (and suggesting times to break those rules), she explains the interconnections among Lexigrams, astrology, and numerology. Sharita Star goes on to show how many of the Lexigrams that can be derived from names and titles relate to the very astrological and numerical guidance that governs them, providing historical evidence to show how this dynamic works. To do so, she offers references to zodiacal Sun signs and the Chaldean understanding of numerology. Moreover, Sharita provides numerous case studies of well-know individuals, past and present. It's All in the Name is a valuable tool for exploring the profound inner meanings of names and everyday words and for deepening one's intuitive capacity.

Kylian Mbappe: World Soccer Sensation tells the story of the breakout player from the 2018 World Cup, a teenager who led France to the championship with his breathtaking speed and dynamic goal-scoring ability. Features include a timeline, a glossary, further readings, websites, source notes, and an index. Aligned to Common Core Standards and correlated to state standards. Essential Library is an imprint of Abdo Publishing, a division of ABDO.

When it comes to sports and entertainment, the glitz and the glamour of celebrity life, most of us only aspire to gain something small such as an autograph. Few of us ever have the chance to sit down with stars and discuss their lives, or rub shoulders with those closest to them. Being up close and personal with UFC, boxing and entertainment stars is just part of Fiaz Rafiq's daily routine. He's worked closely with some of the most revered champions and pioneers of UFC. In this gripping memoir he shares riveting behind-the-scenes stories of the top MMA and boxing champions and legends - from Randy Couture, Royce Gracie, Brock Lesnar, Daniel Cormier and Conor McGregor to Muhammad Ali and Bruce Lee (to many the Godfather of MMA) - their gritty beginnings and their most triumphant moments. The result is the culmination of over two decades of work, gaining the trust and confidence of the greatest fighters and personalities in MMA and combat sports. To the Top is a fascinating odyssey that uncovers the hidden history of the most brutal combat sport on the planet.

“A compelling perspective on the evolution of sports business . . . provides an excellent roadmap to maximizing the benefits and minimizing the pitfalls.” —David Stern, NBA Commissioner The businesses behind Dubai Sports City, the branding of David Beckham, and the popularity of fantasy sports leagues are unmistakable indicators that the sports and the entertainment industries are quickly becoming one and the same. This rapid convergence has been key to the sports business industry’s continued growth and financial success. Money Games not only analyzes how industry stakeholders have monetized this convergence, but also answers this core question: how can the sports business continue to profit from the blurring of sports and entertainment? Author David M. Carter considers a wide array of implications for television content, video gaming, athlete branding, the Internet, mobile technology, gambling, sports-anchored real estate development, venue technology, and corporate marketing—in short, those areas where business opportunities exist now that sports and entertainment have become one. “Fans, sports and media executives, and even investors will find that Carter’s examination . . . of the changing landscape of sports and entertainment helps them understand their own experiences.” —Stephen A. Greyser, Harvard Business School “An invaluable resource for stakeholders hoping to monetize sports as entertainment.” —Kenneth L. Shropshire, Wharton School of the University of Pennsylvania and author of The Business of Sports Agents “The strategies and tactics that all the players will want—from the boardroom to the locker room—can be found in Money Games.” —John Nendick, Ernst & Young Global Media & Entertainment Industry Leader “Identifies the challenges facing the various sports leagues in delivering fans what they want.” —Allan H. (Bud) Selig, Baseball Commissioner

Geoffrey Douglas's The Game of Their Lives: The Untold Story of the World Cup's Biggest Upset tells the inspirational underdog story of the 1950s World cup, a must-read for soccer fanatics. In the late spring of 1950, eleven young immigrants' sons, most of them strangers to each other, came together for the love and fun of a game of soccer. They came from Missouri, Pennsylvania, Massachusetts, and New York, from jobs in canneries, brickyards, post offices, classrooms, and bars, to play for their country in the 1950 World Cup, resulting in what has since been called, by scores of sources for more than forty years, the greatest upset victory in the history of American sports. But no one in America at the time paid attention. Their only public honor--roughly twenty minutes' worth--was from a throng of strangers in a Brazilian mining town. Geoffrey Douglas's The Game of Their Lives is the story of the lives of these men: their jobs, wives, sweethearts, neighborhoods, the innocence of their era, the anonymity in which they worked and played. It is the story of heroism, stoicism, and simple unsung grace. Of a time before television, endorsement contracts, movie rights for serial killers, and seven-figure idols who denigrate us all. And ultimately--though it is not a sports story--it is the story of a game, played brilliantly. A single game of soccer, the greater game of life.

The Historical Dictionary of Historical Dictionary of Postwar Japan relates the history of postwar Japan through a chronology, an introductory essay, a bibliography, and hundreds of cross-referenced dictionary entries on significant persons, events, places, organizations.

Contemporary events management is a diverse and challenging field. This major new introductory textbook is the first to fully explore the multi-disciplinary nature of events management and to provide all the practical skills and professional knowledge students need to succeed in the events industry. The book covers every type of event studied on an Events Management course, including sports, music, the arts, corporate events, tourism, and the public and voluntary sectors. It introduces the key issues facing the contemporary events industry, from health, safety and risk management to sustainability to developing a market-oriented business, with every topic brought to life through case-studies, personal biographies and examples of best practice. Written by a team of authors with many years of industry experience, it introduces the practical skills required in every core area of events management, including marketing, finance, project management, strategy, operations, event design and human resources. A companion website for the book includes a dazzling array of additional features, including self-test questions, audio interviews with key industry figures, additional case-studies and PowerPoint slides for each chapter. Events Management: An Introduction is the essential course text for any events management program.