The World Cup has come to North America. For the first time the tournament is being shared across three countries — Mexico, the United States, and Canada — and for a month, the whole planet is watching the same ninety minutes at a time. It's the kind of moment that makes you want to read about the game as much as watch it: where it came from, who's playing it, what it means to the people who can't stop loving it.
Good news, then, that soccer has some of the best writing of any sport, and that so much of it lives with independent publishers. The list we've put together runs from the official tournament guide to literary essays, from single-name player biographies for eight-year-olds to a clear-eyed reckoning with what hosting actually costs. We've leaned into the bread: the women's game alongside the men's, books in Spanish and bilingual editions for the enormous audience this Cup is reaching, picture books for the youngest fans, and a couple of titles that are just plain fun.
These books were made by writers, editors, translators, and publishers who love the game and wanted to get it right. We hope at least one of them ends up on your couch this summer, within arm's reach of the remote.
Following the Tournament
The essentials: where to start, what just happened, and the record book to settle arguments.
FIFA World Cup: The Official Guide by Keir Radnedge (Welbeck)
The officially licensed companion to the tournament — groups, venues, fixtures, and the players to watch, all in one place. Radnedge has been covering World Cups for longer than most of the squads have been alive, and it shows. You'll want to keep this on your coffee table for the next month.
The Official History of the FIFA World Cup by FIFA Museum (Welbeck)
The only officially licensed history of the competition, from the thirteen-team tournament in Uruguay in 1930 to the present. A handsome hardback for the fan who wants the whole story, not just this summer's chapter.
World Soccer Records 2026 by Keir Radnedge (Welbeck)
From the same author as the Official Guide, this is the stats-and-milestones companion: the goals, the streaks, the records that fall and the ones that look unbreakable. The book you reach for mid-argument to prove you were right.
The Women's Game
You can't tell the story of the World Cup without it.
Soccer Legends Alphabet: Women by Beck Feiner (Alphabet Legends)
A to Z through the icons of women's soccer, in the bold, graphic style the Alphabet Legends series is loved for. It's pitched at kids, but it's the kind of book that ends up framed on a wall. A gift-able pick for the whole household.
The Players
For the fans who follow the names as closely as the teams.
Pulisic by Harry Coninx (Leapfrog Press)
The story of the United States' biggest star, arriving exactly as he leads the hosts onto the world stage. Part of Leapfrog's accessible biography series for readers around 8 and up — short, fast, and built to turn a curious kid into a committed fan.
Mbappé by Harry Coninx (Leapfrog Press)
A reader-friendly life of one of the game's defining talents, from the Paris suburbs to the top of the sport. Same series as Pulisic, same easy on-ramp for young readers who want to know the player behind the highlights.
En Español
This Cup is reaching an enormous Spanish-speaking audience, and Planeta's bilingual line is built for exactly this moment.
El mundial de Messi / Messi's World Cup by Alejandro Wall (Planeta)
The story of Messi's crowning achievement — the trophy that had eluded him, finally lifted. In Spanish, for the readers who lived every minute of it.
366 historias del fútbol mundial que deberías conocer / 366 Stories from World Football You Should Know by Alfredo Relaño(Planeta)
A story of world football for every single day of the year, from one of Spain's most beloved sports writers. Bilingual, browsable, and impossible to put down once you start flipping. The perfect bedside or backpack book for the tournament.
No me gusta el fútbol / I Don't Like Soccer(Planeta)
A bilingual story for middle-grade readers (roughly 10–12) — because not every kid in a soccer-mad household actually loves soccer, and that's a story worth telling too.
Martina futbolista by Susanna Isern(NubeOcho)
A picture book about a girl who loves the game, from one of the most celebrated names in Spanish-language children's publishing. In Spanish, for ages 5–10 — and a lovely first soccer book to read aloud.
For Younger Fans
Activity, discovery, and one genuinely beautiful read for the next generation of supporters.
Soccerology by Kevin Sylvester (Annick Press)
The science, history, and weird trivia behind the beautiful game, written and illustrated by Kevin Sylvester for ages 9–12. Kirkus praised it for its frankness and scope — it doesn't talk down to kids, which is exactly why they love it.
Soccer Coloring and Activity Book by Clive Gifford (Michael O'Mara)
Hands-on soccer fun for ages 7–9 — coloring, puzzles, and activities to keep small fans busy between matches. The thing you actually want in the bag on a long tournament afternoon.
One Goal by Heather Camlot (Groundswood Books)
Proof that the beautiful game can help build a better planet — and a genuinely uplifting read for any young fan. This Junior Library Guild Gold Standard pick travels the world for its stories: solar-powered pitches in Nigeria, soccer fields that harvest drinking water in South Africa, stadium seats made from recycled fishing nets, whole crowds cycling to the match instead of driving, and more.
Kirkus calls it "a hopeful playbook," and it closes with a game plan that kids can actually run themselves.
Politics, Culture, and Great Writing
For the grown-up reader who wants the literature, the history, and the hard questions.
The Game at the End of the World by Juan Villoro(Restless Books)
The new collection from Mexico's great man of letters, translated by Francisco Cantú — and it's a joy. Villoro connects soccer to art, science, philosophy, and music, with essays on villainous referees, communist bakers, the secret 1971 women's World Cup, and a goalkeeper's last stand. The closing piece on the Mexico–US rivalry is worth the price on its own. Paul Theroux calls it a magnificent handbook to this very tournament; we'd just call it essential.
God Is Round by Juan Villoro(Restless Books)
If The Game at the End of the World leaves you wanting more Villoro — and it will — this is where to go. His celebrated 2016 collection (translated by Thomas Bunstead) is a kaleidoscopic meditation on soccer as faith, ritual, and identity, with unforgettable portraits of Maradona, Messi, Ronaldo, Pelé, and Zidane. It belongs on the shelf next to Galeano's Soccer in Sun and Shadow.
What Is FIFA For? by Alan Tomlinson(Bristol University Press)
A short, sharp, accessible look at football's most powerful and most scrutinized institution — what it does, where its money goes, and who actually answers to whom. The clear-eyed primer to read before the next FIFA headline lands.
God Is Round by Juan Villoro(Restless Books)
The definitive book on what hosting a mega-event really costs. Zirin, The Nation's sports editor, reported from the favelas of Rio to the halls of power in Washington on Brazil's 2014 World Cup and 2016 Olympics — and the protests they sparked. A Boston Globe Best Sports Book, and pointed reading now that the tournament has come to our own backyard.
Just For Fun
Two for the shelf that's purely for the love of it.
Be My Endgame by Zarah Detand (Storm Publishing)
Yes — an MM football romance, and a natural next step if you came to us through our Pride list. Rivals to lovers, forced proximity, teammates with history: it knows exactly what it is and delivers it with charm. The summer read for fans who want a little heat with their highlights.
101 Fascinating Football Facts by Alex Broad(Dundurn Press)
Exactly what it says on the tin: 101 bits of trivia to win every World Cup watch party and out-talk the loudest person in the room. Small, fun, and dangerously quotable.
This list is a start, not the last word. There are plenty more soccer books we could have included, and we'll keep recommending them long after the final whistle — because the love of the game doesn't pack up when the tournament ends.
If something here pulls you in, that's the whole point. These books were made by people who care about the game as much as you do. We hope they find their way to you. Enjoy the tournament — we'll see you at the final!