{"product_id":"ultra-the-underworld-of-italian-football-by-tobias-jones","title":"Ultra: The Underworld of Italian Football by Tobias Jones","description":"\u003cp\u003eWinner of the Daily Telegraph Football Book of the Year\u003cbr\u003eUltras are often compared to punks, Hell's Angels, hooligans or the South American Barras Bravas. But in truth, they are a thoroughly Italian phenomenon...\u003cbr\u003eFrom the author of The Dark Heart of Italy, Blood on the Altar and A Place of Refuge.\u003c\/p\u003e\u003cp\u003eItaly's ultras are the most organised and violent fans in European football. Many groups have evolved into criminal gangs, involved in ticket-touting, drug-dealing and murder. A cross between the Hell's Angels and hooligans, they're often the foot-soldiers of the Mafia and have been instrumental in the rise of the far-right.\u003c\/p\u003e\u003cp\u003eBut the purist ultras say that they are are insurgents fighting against a police state and modern football. Only amongst the ultras, they say, can you find belonging, community and a sacred concept of sport. They champion not just their teams, they say, but their forgotten suburbs and the dispossessed.\u003c\/p\u003e\u003cp\u003eThrough the prism of the ultras, Jones crafts a compelling investigation into Italian society and its favourite sport. He writes about not just the ultras of some of Italy's biggest clubs – Juventus, Torino, Lazio, Roma and Genoa – but also about its lesser-known ones from Cosenza and Catania. He examines the sinister side of football fandom, with its violence and political extremism, but also admires the passion, wit, solidarity and style of a fascinating and contradictory subculture.\u003c\/p\u003e","brand":"Mahala Independent Bookstore","offers":[{"title":"Default Title","offer_id":61622695723338,"sku":"9781786697370","price":16.5,"currency_code":"EUR","in_stock":true}],"thumbnail_url":"\/\/cdn.shopify.com\/s\/files\/1\/0760\/5662\/5482\/files\/9781786697370.jpg?v=1776316947","url":"https:\/\/mahala.bg\/en\/products\/ultra-the-underworld-of-italian-football-by-tobias-jones","provider":"Mahala Independent Bookstore","version":"1.0","type":"link"}