Sven: My Story

A wonderfully honest and beautifully written memoir from one of the most intriguing soccer managers of the last 25 years

Perhaps no soccer manager has ever had his personal life dissected as thoroughly as Sven-Goran Eriksson. Yet the man that monopolized the British press during five tumultuous years as England manager remains an enigma. Who, precisely, is Sven? Here, in his no-holds-barred autobiography, the secretive Swede takes us on one of the wildest rides in world soccer. Populated by fake sheikhs, Italian lawyers, Nottingham outlaws, and, of course, many of the biggest names in the game, his is a 40-year-long career that coincides with the evolution of the sport into a global multibillion-dollar industry. Most of all, this is a surprisingly tender, sometimes heartbreaking, but never bitter account of a simple man with a most complicated story. A man who has reached a crossroads in his life, who until now has never stopped to ask himself the question: was it worth it?

Sven-Goran Eriksson's remarkable career spans four decades over as many continents. At the age of 34, he led mostly amateur side IFK Gothenburg to UEFA Cup victory in one of the greatest upsets in pro soccer history. He has won numerous league and cup titles in Portugal and Italy with Benfica, Roma, and Lazio. In 2001, he became the first foreign manager of the England national team, reaching three consecutive quarter-finals in major tournaments. Following managerial positions at Manchester City, Mexico, Ivory Coast, and Leicester, he is currently the technical director of Al Nasr in the United Arab Emirates league.