Hello! Welcome to the blog for the course "How Soccer Explains Europe: Coaching Methods and Critical Approaches."

In a few short weeks we will be on our way to Manchester, England to begin our study of soccer in Europe, exploring different aspects of coaching as well as ways that soccer influences politics, and social and cultural aspects of the countries that we will visit. We will begin in England, going from Manchester to London, stopping to train at the English FA on the way. We will head to Brussels, Belgium, then to Amsterdam, Netherlands, and finally to Frankfurt and Munich, Germany. We will be going to museums, historical sites, training facilities, and matches, and we look forward to keeping you up to game speed every step of the way.

My name is Claire Little! I am a senior from Northfield, Minnesota, and I am studying communication studies and anthropology. At Luther, I have had the chance to be a part of the women's soccer team, work in the Media Relations office, and participate in one other J-term trip (Tales of the Sea in the Virgin Islands and Puerto Rico in 2016). I'm an avid fan of movies, books, skiing and mountains. I'm really looking forward to studying more of the game I love to play and seeing how that affects culture.

My name is Meredith Arpey, and I am a senior from Iowa City, Iowa and studying environmental science. In my time at Luther, I have had the opportunity to play soccer for the women's soccer team, to serve on the Dance Marathon leadership board, as well as participate in two other J-term trips (Communication and Sport in New Zealand in 2016, and Paideia 450: US Schools in Hawaii in 2017). I am looking forward to studying different aspects of soccer all throughout Europe!

As Sir Bobby Robson, English soccer player and soccer manager, once said, "What is a club in any case? Not the buildings or the directors or the people who are paid to represent it. It's not the television contracts, get-out clauses, marketing departments or executive boxes. It's the noise, the passion, the feeling of belonging, the pride in your city. It's a small boy clambering up the stadium steps for the very first time, gripping his father's hand, gawping at that hallowed stretch of turf beneath him, and without being able to do a thing about it, falling in love."

If you have any questions, feel free to let us know at:
[email protected]
[email protected]

Until next time,
Meredith and Claire