Following the Ball: The Beautiful Game of Colonialism

Todd Cleveland is an associate professor of history at the University of Arkansas. His books include these Ohio University Press titles: Sports in Africa, Past and Present (2020), Following the Ball: The Migration of African Soccer Players across the Portuguese Colonial Empire, 1949–1975 (2018), Diamonds in the Rough: Corporate Paternalism and African Professionalism on the Mines of Colonial Angola, 1917–1975 (2015) and Stones of Contention: A History of Africa’s Diamonds (2014).
With Following the Ball, Cleveland examines the experiences of African football players from Portugal’s colonies as they relocated to Portugal between 1949 and the conclusion of the colonial era in 1975, examining the Estado Novo regime’s use of the players as propaganda in an attempt to present a unified colonial front.

Time: 6 p.m.
Date: March 23
Location: Liberal Arts Building on NAU Campus, Room 120