Football Writing Festival 2017 at various venues

Sarah-Clare Conlon, Literature Editor
Sports journalist Caroline Barker
Sports journalist Caroline Barker.

Football Writing Festival 2017 at National Football Museum, Manchester 30 August — 7 September 2017 Tickets from £3 — Book now

The Football Writing Festival is back for its fourth year in Manchester, kicking off on Wednesday 30 August and running for just over a week. A partnership between the National Football Museum, Waterstones Deansgate and Hotel Football based at Old Trafford, the festival showcases a cross-venue programme of soccer-related events, covering subjects from non-league to Champions League, with panellists including some of the UK and Europe’s best-known sports writers.

The line-up features festival favourites The Blizzard magazine winning the toss and getting things underway; outspoken player Joey Barton and former City captain Paul Lake chatting about football’s “talent factory” with journalist Michael Calvin and BBC Sport’s Lead for Diversity and Women’s Sport Shelley Alexander; sports writer Patrick Barclay talking about his biography of Manchester United’s legendary manager Sir Matt Busby, published this September, and The Guardian‘s David Conn discussing his latest book, The Fall Of The House Of FIFA.

Caroline Barker (pictured) of Radio 5 Live will be at the National Football Museum on Saturday 2 September, 6.30pm, hosting The Non-League Show Live. The special sees her introducing guests such as Nige Tassell, whose Bottom Corner: A Season With The Dreamers of Non-League Football is, we’re told, a must-read for hopeless football romantics everywhere and proves it’s not all Lamborghinis and luxury skyscrapers in the footballing world.

You can choose to buy tickets for individual festival events, or bagsy a Season Pass – getting you a seat at all eight and saving you a stonking £25. You’ll also have the chance to buy discounted tickets for one more, yet-to-be-announced, big event during the festival.

 

Football Writing Festival 2017 at National Football Museum, Manchester 30 August — 7 September 2017 Tickets from £3 Book now

Where to go near Football Writing Festival 2017 at various venues

Cathedral Gardens
Cathedral Quarter
Park
Cathedral Gardens

Cathedral Gardens is a partially lawned public space in Manchester city centre, located between Manchester Cathedral and the National Football Museum.

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Mamucium

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Cathedral Quarter
Restaurant
Salvi’s Mozzarella Bar

Head to this tiny Italian eatery for an authentic slice of Naples. It majors in mozzarella and the stuff here is a revelation: light, flavoursome, with oily, oozing pesto.

Chetham’s Library in Long Millgate in Manchester
Manchester
Library
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Chetham’s Library is one of the must-sees of any visit to Manchester. The library was founded in 1653, and is the oldest public library in the world – but the building dates back even further, to 1421.

Manchester
Restaurant
Döner Haus

This authentic Berlin kebab and bier haus is the latest addition to the ever-growing Corn Exchange food family.

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