Confessional tales from former football hooligans: a nostalgic, narcissistic wallow in football violence

Recent years have seen the publication of a number of books written by former football hooligans in which they describe their violent activities during the 1960s through to the 1980s when British football hooliganism was at its peak. This essay reviews the background to the auto/biographical ‘hoolie‐lit’ publishing genre and considers the value of these accounts when researching hooliganism, together with an exploration of their themes and common trends. The essay sifts and sorts through these memory‐based auto/biographical accounts and concludes that very few offer any meaningful insight or merit in the study of football hooliganism. A small number of books are recommended as making a significant contribution whilst the vast majority are found wanting due to the clichéd written style, formulaic structure and thoroughly narcissistic tone