The Assistant Professor of Football: Soccer, Culture, History.
The academic treatment for English-speakers who get that soccer is more than gamedays, stars and goals. Who wonder about the histories, subcultures and politics that make the game so different from many American sports cultures; and who care about a critical take on soccer as a global capitalist machine. A European-guided journey, with one expert "visiting professor" each episode.
The Assistant Professor of Football: Soccer, Culture, History.
A 98 Year-Old, Member-Run Soccer Club in America? Meet Fort Wayne S.C. Plus: Eurovision!
Fort Wayne is a city of around 260,00 in the very east of the northern half of Indiana. Like many mid-sized midwestern cities, it has been shaped by the industrialization of the late 19th century, immigration waves from Western, Central and Southeastern Europe until the 1920s and from the rest of the world today, deindustrialization after World War 2, the decline of urban America as well as revitalization more recently.
It also has a soccer club, founded by German immigrants for the “Promotion of Soccer Football and German Culture” in 1927. And unlike many other semi-professional or pre-professional teams, Fort Wayne SC is a proper members-owned club, with members well beyond German immigrants now, and legally a Non-Profit. It’s not just that this story is interesting - it’s also pretty well documented. FWSC has some history minded folks out there. I talked to one of them, Dan Kruse, who also happens to be the club’s president. The club appeared on my radar because they play my hometown team Goshen City FC, new to the Midwest Premier League, on the 31st. So before a longer conversation with Dan Kruse, I also got a quick word from Goshen City FC’s boss, Henrique Eichelberger, about new life in a new league, and the outlook for this season.
HELPFUL LINKS FOR THIS EPISODE:
Underrated Eurovisions Songs:
Abor and Tynna (Germany) - Baller
Erika Vikman (Finland) - Ich Komme (live video from the arena, because… flying giant mic and things)
Laura Thorn (Luxembourg) - La Poupée Monte Le Son
Lucio Corsi (Italy) - Volevo Essere un Duro
Please leave a quick voicemail with any feedback, corrections, suggestions - or just greetings - HERE. Or comment via Twitter, Instagram, Bluesky or Facebook.
If you enjoy this podcast and think that what I do fills a gap in soccer coverage that others would be interested in as well, please
- Recommend The Assistant Professor of Football. Spreading the word, through word of mouth, truly does help.
- Leave some rating stars at the podcast platform of your choice. There are so many sports podcasts out there, and only ratings make this project visible; only then can people who look for a different kind of take on European soccer actually find me.
Artwork for The Assistant Professor of Football is by Saige Lind
Instrumental music for this podcast, including the introduction track, is by the artist Ketsa and used under a Creative Commons license through Free Music Archive: https://freemusicarchive.org/music/Ketsa/