Uruguay: Football’s First Global Power, 1918–1930 is the inside story of how Uruguay rose from South American pioneers to global champions. Their revolutionary style exploded into world consciousness at the 1924 Paris Olympics, where La Celeste dazzled Europe and redefined the possibilities of the sport. Two consecutive Olympic triumphs, followed by celebrated tours across Europe and North America, elevated José Nasazzi, José Leandro Andrade and Héctor Scarone into international icons who set new standards for skill, intelligence and athleticism. The story reaches its dramatic climax in Montevideo in 1930, as Uruguay hosted and won the inaugural FIFA World Cup amid construction crises, political tension and European boycotts. Drawing on rare archival material from Montevideo, Martin da Cruz reconstructs the personalities, controversies and cultural forces that shaped one of football’s most important eras. Richly detailed and deeply researched, this is the definitive English?language account of how a nation of barely two million people produced a footballing generation unmatched to this day.

Uruguay remains a curious case in world football. Early Olympic and World Cup triumphs made it the game's first global power, and the small country has punched above its weight ever since. But the story behind its success is untold. In this first English-language history of Uruguayan football, Martin da Cruz maps the game's journey from exclusive British pastime to Uruguayan national passion, bringing to life the teams, players and personalities who helped create one of the world's most intense sporting cultures. From the start, football was intimately tied to Uruguay's national story. Wedged between giants Argentina and Brazil and lacking a cohesive national identity, Uruguay used the game to create unified and educated citizens, to put an end to civil war and become an advanced social democracy. Yet football also drove counter-narratives of class and race, challenging Uruguay's self-identification as a peaceful, 'white' nation. From Beauty to Duty is the story of a little country made big.

Uruguay remains a curious case in world football. Early Olympic and World Cup triumphs made it the game''s first global power, and the small country has punched above its weight ever since. But the story behind its success is untold. In this first English-language history of Uruguayan football, Martin da Cruz maps the game''s journey from exclusive British pastime to Uruguayan national passion, bringing to life the teams, players and personalities who helped create one of the world''s most intense sporting cultures. From the start, football was intimately tied to Uruguay''s national story. Wedged between giants Argentina and Brazil and lacking a cohesive national identity, Uruguay used the game to create unified and educated citizens, to put an end to civil war and become an advanced social democracy. Yet football also drove counter-narratives of class and race, challenging Uruguay''s self-identification as a peaceful, ''white'' nation. From Beauty to Duty is the story of a little country made big.

Uruguay: Football’s First Global Power, 1918–1930 is the inside story of how Uruguay rose from South American pioneers to global champions. Their revolutionary style exploded into world consciousness at the 1924 Paris Olympics, where La Celeste dazzled Europe and redefined the possibilities of the sport. Two consecutive Olympic triumphs, followed by celebrated tours across Europe and North America, elevated José Nasazzi, José Leandro Andrade and Héctor Scarone into international icons who set new standards for skill, intelligence and athleticism. The story reaches its dramatic climax in Montevideo in 1930, as Uruguay hosted and won the inaugural FIFA World Cup amid construction crises, political tension and European boycotts. Drawing on rare archival material from Montevideo, Martin da Cruz reconstructs the personalities, controversies and cultural forces that shaped one of football’s most important eras. Richly detailed and deeply researched, this is the definitive English?language account of how a nation of barely two million people produced a footballing generation unmatched to this day.

Uruguay remains a curious case in world football. Early Olympic and World Cup triumphs made it the game's first global power, and the small country has punched above its weight ever since. But the story behind its success is untold. In this first English-language history of Uruguayan football, Martin da Cruz maps the game's journey from exclusive British pastime to Uruguayan national passion, bringing to life the teams, players and personalities who helped create one of the world's most intense sporting cultures. From the start, football was intimately tied to Uruguay's national story. Wedged between giants Argentina and Brazil and lacking a cohesive national identity, Uruguay used the game to create unified and educated citizens, to put an end to civil war and become an advanced social democracy. Yet football also drove counter-narratives of class and race, challenging Uruguay's self-identification as a peaceful, 'white' nation. From Beauty to Duty is the story of a little country made big.

Uruguay remains a curious case in world football. Early Olympic and World Cup triumphs made it the game''s first global power, and the small country has punched above its weight ever since. But the story behind its success is untold. In this first English-language history of Uruguayan football, Martin da Cruz maps the game''s journey from exclusive British pastime to Uruguayan national passion, bringing to life the teams, players and personalities who helped create one of the world''s most intense sporting cultures. From the start, football was intimately tied to Uruguay''s national story. Wedged between giants Argentina and Brazil and lacking a cohesive national identity, Uruguay used the game to create unified and educated citizens, to put an end to civil war and become an advanced social democracy. Yet football also drove counter-narratives of class and race, challenging Uruguay''s self-identification as a peaceful, ''white'' nation. From Beauty to Duty is the story of a little country made big.