3.5 stars. This was very readable and mostly enjoyable, but with caveats.
Foer's blithe USA-centric blinkers were annoying at times (especially in the Iran chapter) but it's pretty representative of a certain kind of early-2000 optimistic liberal mindset I guess.
Also frustrating was the absolute unwillingness to call Ukranian football's blatant racism by what it is, the author instead arguing that it's some quaint sort of folkloric nationalist impulse unlike racism in western Europe (even while highlighting the continuity of primate/banana tropes used against Black footballers).
Still worth a read, enjoyed the chapters on Serbian football and Jewishness in football the most, but with critical faculties intact.