Overview

Pelé, Maradona, Cruyff, Gazza, Ronaldo, Messi and more... legendary sports artist Paul Trevillion has drawn them all in this unique artist’s eye view of the world’s greatest football tournament. Containing Paul’s original artwork across each of the 22 tournaments to date and with specially commissioned work previewing this summer’s World Cup in the USA, Canada and Mexcio, this incredible book also contains the inside story on the tournament’s most controversial and shocking moments by legendary journalist Harry Harris. From The Hand of God to Roy Keane’s explosion on Saipan and Gazza’s Tears, Harry has covered them all. Ossie Ardiles also provides a behind-the-scenes portrait of life at the eye of the Maradona-mania storm. During their long careers Paul and Harry have observed, written about or drawn every tournament since 1958 for the national press - this is a must for football fans of all nationalities. Pelé, Maradona, Cruyff, Gazza, Ronaldo, Messi and more... legendary sports artist Paul Trevillion has drawn them all in this unique artist’s eye view of the world’s greatest football tournament. From The Hand of God to Roy Keane’s explosion on Saipan and Gazza’s Tears, Harry Harris has covered them all - this is a must for football fans of all nationalities.

Full Product Details

9781915616364

Table of Contents

Reviews

“Paul Trevillion is the Master of Movement.”

Author Information

My World Cup memories began in the 1950’s when my art was starting to appear regularly in the national press. Even though I had a press pass, I always chose to stand behind the goal. In World Cup year 1958 my Master Vending series of cards featured Matthews, Finney and Charlton started the bubble gum card collecting craze, but it was at the 1958 World Cup in Sweden where I was totally captivated by a 17 year-old, exceptionally gifted Brazilian named Pelé. 1966 and I was at Wembley when England won the World Cup and I became friends with Gordon Banks, George Cohen, Bobby Moore, Jack Charlton, Bobby Charlton and Roger Hunt with Alan Ball ‘Player of the Tournament’ becoming a close friend. I have been blessed over the years to have known and captured in pen and ink a multitude of world class players and coaches - Sir Stanley Matthews, Sir Tom Finney, Sir Alf Ramsey, Bobby Moore, Gary Lineker, Paul Gascoigne and many more. I have special memories of World Cup ‘74 (when Scotland wore sock tags!) and working with the great coach Don Howe, World Cup ’90 when I became Paul Gascoigne’s official artist. World Cup USA ’94 meant new, exciting art for Pelé with Umbro, billboard posters for Budweiser and a unique commission with Jack Charlton and the Republic of Ireland team. Every World Cup year brings something special with the ‘new’ legends on the block, Lionel Messi and Cristiano Ronaldo. It’s World Cup 2026 and at 92 years old I am still as excited as I was in 1958. My love affair with the world’s greatest football tournament began as a 14 year-old as I was there to see England lift the trophy at Wembley. Later in life I was privileged to write Pelé’s official autobiography and tell the inside story of the great man’s first World Cup at the age of 17 and interviewed many of The Greatest Ever World Cup Team, Brazil 1970. How I pulled off becoming the only journalist to interview Diego Maradona one-to-one in the back seat of Ossie Ardiles’ car in 1986 must be one of the most off beat World Cup stories of all time. As Chief Football Writer for the Daily Mirror I was at the Azteca Stadium to witness both the Hand of God and the Greatest Ever World Cup goal within minutes of each other. At Italia ’90 it was all about Gazza’s tears, and I was there to document all the behind the scenes stories. Four years later, I was at the press conference following Maradona’s failed drugs test. At France ’98 I witnessed David Beckham’s red card and the incredible fall out. Prior to the 2002 tournament I won the award of “Sports Story of the Year” by breaking Roy Keane’s bust up with Mick McCarthy, while I was also at the press conference when Ruud Gullit announced he was leaving the World Cup squad. In my career with the Mail, Mirror and Express I have known and become friends with most of the Boys of ‘66. My greatest wish - to see England win the World Cup in 2026 after 60 years of hurt! Ossie Ardiles was part of Argentina’s 1978 victorious World Cup squad and moved to Tottenham Hotspur later that summer, becoming one of the first high-profile overseas signings in English football. He soon acquired a cult following in north London helping the club to three trophies during his spell at White Hart Lane. As a senior international, Ossie befriended a young Diego Maradona and has a behind the scenes view of life alongside the greatest footballer of all time. Ossie tells all about Maradonamania here.

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