About your writer
Lovely that you’ve stopped by the site! I’m Jack, your footy-obsessive correspondent and administrator of In the Half Space. I hail from California, but am currently based in the windy Dutch town of Rotterdam, where I’m studying for a Master’s Degree in Global History and International Relations at Erasmus University. Besides soccer, my interests include music, history, hiking, and despairing over my beloved San Francisco Giants.
How do soccer and the society which surrounds it mix and influence each other?
That question lies at the heart of this site. What occurs on the pitch is only a small part of what makes the world’s game the enthralling spectacle it is, as the somber sight of empty stadia during the pandemic proved. Supporters and the wider communities surrounding a football club give shape to the ethos and identity of that club, and are in turn often influenced themselves by football clubs, which in many towns and cities across Europe are the longest-surviving vital social institution, having outlasted the decline of heavy industry, the church and other ties which used to bind.
That is not to say that this site dedicates no attention to matters on the pitch. Though this site cannot compete with specialized tactics blogs, I provide insights on interesting tactical developments, especially those happening at Feyenoord, where I am fortunate enough to have a season ticket and be able to watch the side every other weekend. It is the goal of this site to maneuver in the half-space, between events on the pitch and the stories which develop around the sport, and to provide high-quality writing about both.
I live in the Netherlands, and as such this site has a partial focus on Dutch football. There is a curious lack of journalistic attention for Dutch football in the English-speaking world; both David Winner and Simon Kuper have written brilliant books on the subject, but there is little coverage of the Eredivisie or, in particular, of the grassroots game available in English. It is an ambition of this site to make interesting news and developments within the Dutch game available to an English audience.
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