Pitch and Floodlit Dreams kick off new football series with Armfield book

Sports book publishers Pitch and Floodlit Dreams have joined forces to create a new collection of football books, publishing under the banner Football Shorts.

The collaboration will see three books published a year focusing on personal stories about the sport. The series will be curated by Floodlit Dreams founder Ian Ridley, who will also write the first book in the series on the late Jimmy Armfield, to be published in January 2023.

Pantomime Hero by Ridley will tell of his relationship with the Blackpool and England captain, who was a member of the World Cup-winning squad of 1966 and subsequently a manager and broadcaster. It will chart the story of how Armfield took over from Brian Clough as manager at Leeds United in 1974.

Ridley said: “Jimmy was a such a well-loved figure in the game and beyond and I was proud to call him a friend, and proud to help him finally get a medal for being in the ’66 World Cup back-up squad. I was particularly intrigued by that time in ’74 when he was entrusted with restoring some morale at Leeds following The Damned United era and, amazingly, put on a pantomime starring the players at the City Varieties Theatre and sold it out. I always wanted to write something about Jimmy and with the help and input of his sons Duncan and John and their own memories, I am going to try and do Jimmy justice.”

The second book in the series, to be published in late spring next year, will be written by Jane Purdon, former c.e.o. of Women in Football, about her trailblazing role in the women’s game, the Lionesses summer that saw them win the European Championship, and the effect since on the state of the game as the team go into the Women’s World Cup next summer.

Autumn 2023 will see the publication of the third book, by comedian, TV and radio writer and novelist Andy Hamilton, who grew up a few streets from Chelsea FC and who will document his boyhood love and support for the club – and how he came to question it following events at Stamford Bridge, both on and off the pitch.

“Jane and Andy are superb writers and I just know these are going to be wonderful books,” Ridley added. “The whole emphasis of this project is going to be on the writing, with engaging personal tales and vignettes. The anecdotes and observations that Jane and Andy will share will be poignant, trenchant and entertaining.”

The paperbacks will retail at £9.99 each and there will be a chance to subscribe and get all three for £25, all signed by the authors.

Pitch publisher Jane Camillin said: “We are really excited by this venture. When Ian approached us with the idea, we could immediately see its potential and are thrilled to be working with him to produce this series of high-quality reads at an affordable price.”