Connecting the Continent
The Birth of the European Cup and Football's Golden Age
Available September 1st 2023 

The compelling story of the European Cup's humble origins, the creation of modern football and the building of today’s Superclubs.

The European Cup, now the Champions League, is the high-water mark of club football. Featuring some of the most valuable, popular and legendary sporting institutions on Earth, its final is consistently the most watched standalone sporting event on the planet. But it wasn’t always like that.

In Connecting the Continent, Gavin H. MacPhee travels back to the divided and recovering Europe of the mid-50s to shine a light on the humble origins of the European Champion Clubs' Cup. Covering each season from 1955 to 1969 and exploring the dramatic events on and off the field that shaped the tournament’s first fifteen years recalling the exploits of the legends of including Di Stefano, Rivera, Eusebio and Best and the iconic coaches who masterminded the early dynasties and etched their Club's into immortality.

Extensive and entertaining, Connecting the Continent is a must for any fan of the history of football’s great players, coaches and clubs.