Global and Local Football. Politics and Europeanization on the fringes of the EU by Gary Armstrong and Jon F. Mitchell (review)

155 arrived in the city of Plymouth, his presence was brought to the attention of the Spanish Ambassador in London, Diego SarmientodeAcuña,CountofGondomar. Immediately, Gondomar took action and successfully sought Pallache’s arrest. Once Pallache realised that his life was in danger, he tried to escape; however, his ship had to seek shelter at Dartmouth, where he was arrested and eventually brought to trial. Nonetheless, the Spanish efforts to transfer Pallache to Spain or condemn him to imprisonment failed. Despite Count Gondomar setting bail on Pallache at an exorbitant amount, the Dutch community in London succeeded in collecting enough money to pay the sum. The authors rightly comment that despite the fact that Gondomar had published his correspondence and successful interventions made on behalf of the King of Spain, he made no reference to the Pallache story and to the fact that he had failed to have Pallache deported to Spain. Once he returned to the Dutch Republic, Samuel tried, through the help of his nephew Moses, to become the interlocutor between the Ottoman Sultan and MuleyZaydan.Atthesametimehesought to improve relations between the latter and the Dutch republic. Unfortunately for Samuel, the mission failed. Moreover, the spiritofsurvivalofthePallachefamilyreemerges in the fact that immediately after Samuel was freed, his brother, Joseph, also acting on Samuel’s behalf, was ready toputhisfamilyconnectionsattheservice oftheSpanishKingPhilipIII—forahefty pecuniary reward. The family was in dire financial straits. Their Jewish fortitude in their struggle for survival came to the fore, and, at this moment of truth, they found solidarity from the other members of the Jewish community. Unfortunately, the negotiations did not go too far. When the agreement was made, in 1615, Samuel was already seriously ill. He died a poor man in 1616. Simon Mercieca Mediterranean Institute University of Malta Gary Armstrong and Jon F. Mitchell, 2008 Global and Local Football. Politics and Europeanization on the fringes of the EU, Routledge, 212 pp. indexed. ISBN 10:0-41-35017-4 (hbk) 10-203-60748-1 (ebk). This book, focusing on Malta, is intended to provide a case study concerning the dialectic of the local and the global within the context of the politics of European and world football. The authors stir up football memories, for people of my age, against the backdrop of important political events in Malta. Moreover, it is intended to reveal how various episodes and conflicts between personalities shed light on aspects of Maltese society including the construction of ‘imagined community/ies’ taking place both within and outside the country; how Maltese are perceived as well as how certain Maltese perceive themselves. Drawing on the work of Carmel Baldacchino(Malta’sleadingfootballhistorian ) and others, the book covers a lot of ground and revises memories of great events in the annals of Maltese football history. Shuttling from the global to the local, readers are provided with a series of intriguing and thankfully not ‘exoticised’ accounts of the different features of ‘football made in Malta.’ We read about the inevitable tales of corruption which once 156 led to a heated reaction to comments to this effect made in the Scottish press by a former Glasgow Rangers stalwart who managed the Maltese club side, Hamrun Spartans. We also read about the ‘big men’ of Maltese football with some interesting statements made by some of the most colourful characters involved in the Maltese game. The bluntness of some of their statements attests to their colorfulness, rendering each one a carattere pittoresco, as the Italians would call him. There are also references to the Maltesefavouritexalatas(merrymaking) for festas and football victories in the various competitions and the mocking of these teams’ vanquished opponents. I am not so sure, however, of the validity of the term ‘tmieghek’ as used here. ‘Tmieghku bihom’ means ‘outplayed them’ and this would mean a 3 or 4-0 romp and possibly also a comprehensive 2-0 win in which the victors outclassed their opponents. It has nothing to do with immediate postmatch bragging rights as the victors travel though the main thoroughfare of the vanquished team’s home town. The relationship between social class andfootballrivalry,typicalofmanycountries , is underscored. In my view, the discussionsherelackdepth. Thisissue,of immense sociological interest, requires a more systematic exposition. The same...