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Canwest News Service
Subbuteo: For some, Subbuteo is a hobby. For others, it's a lifestyle. The premise of Subbuteo is simple — a tabletop soccer simulation game where players move tiny figurines around a miniature soccer pitch.
They are little plastic players on a rounded base that you "flick to kick." It's a great retro game from the 70s where you could not only collect different teams (everyone from Liverpool to Barcelona to the Vancouver Whitecaps — check Ebay), but you could collect stands, working floodlights, TV cameramen and even policemen and dogs on the sidelines to control the crowd!
The simple premise has spawned a burgeoning subculture of fanatics. There are competitive Subbuteo leagues across Canada, including B.C.'s own WestCoast Table Soccer Club (bcsubbuteoweb.com). Subbueto diehards will travel far and wide looking for a game, so if you're shopping for a soccer fanatic that you wouldn't mind getting out of the house several nights a week, this might be the ticket. Visit www.subbuteoworld.co.uk for game details and purchasing information.
A great soccer book: How Soccer Explains the World by Franklin Foer. It's a fascinating look at the interchange between international soccer and the new global economy. Foer's book takes the reader across the globe and investigates some of the biggest and most successful clubs. The inner workings of A.C. Milan, F.C. Barcelona, Glasgow Rangers and Red Star Belgrade are highlighted in this intellectual, wild ride through Foer's unique theory of globalization. A must-have for any soccer fan. Available at Chapters, www.chapters.indigo.ca).
Rudo y Cursi: Soccer has historically made for some pretty forgettable cinema, but Carlos Cuaron's 2008 release, Rudo y Cursi, has broken the mold. Starring Gael Garcia Bernal (The Motorcycle Diaries, Babel), this drama/comedy tells the story of two brothers — one a striker, one a goalie — who go from working at a banana plantation to playing professionally for rival Mexican clubs.
Rudo y Cursi was an official selection at the Sundance Film Festival this year and was released on DVD and Blu-ray in August Visit www.sonyclassics.com/ rudoycursi/ for more.
Vancouver Whitecaps throwback shirt:. The NASL, Empire Stadium, Peter Beardsley, the Soccer Bowl . . . Getting nostalgic yet? If so, take it a step further. Relive the glory days of Vancouver soccer with this classic 1974 vintage logo T-shirt. Available at the Whitecaps team store, the shirt is 100-per-cent cotton and features the logo worn during Vancouver's inaugural NASL season. Visit www.werkshop. com/whitecapsmerch/home.action for size and ordering details.
If you want to go the whole hog and get the beautiful version that they wore when they won the 1979 Soccer Bowl, check out www.toffs.com. They have all the other NASL shirts too, including the classic Cosmos jersey worn by Pele, Chinaglia and the boys.
Replica national team jerseys: With all 32 spots filled for the FIFA 2010 World Cup in South Africa, now's a great time to buy a national team jersey. Yes, you could go for a nation likely to contend for the 2010 championship, like Brazil, England, Germany, Italy or Argentina. But you could also go a little more obscure. Maybe pick an underdog. Several unheralded nations are returning to the World Cup after a lengthy hiatus — Algeria hasn't made it since 1986 while New Zealand and Honduras haven't been since 1982. But the real story might be North Korea, appearing in its first World Cup since 1966. For all the national-team kits you can imagine, visit www.worldsoccershop.com.
If national teams aren't your cup of tea, popular club jerseys are also available there and at local stores such as Soccerwest and North America Sports. Liverpool, AC Milan, Juventus, Barcelona and Bayern Munich are among the most popular.
