Football is at the heart of British national identity. Through more than forty fascinating stories, Football Nation reveals the hidden and not-so-hidden history of the game since 1945. From the mass audiences of austerity Britain when footballers were amateurs through the arrival of the Premiership after the Hillsborough disaster to the present day when top-flight players command a higher weekly wage than the average spectator can earn in a year, Andrew Ward and John Williams reveal the truth about the national game as it once was and is today. Football Nation is informed, wryly amusing, often surprising and always vastly entertaining. It offers an entirely fresh perspective on the history of the beautiful game in Britain.