We were delighted to welcome Joey D’Urso, Senior Data Journalist at The Times.
Joey delivered a compelling talk based on his book More than a shirt: How football shirts explain global politics, money and power. Joey’s talk took a 250-plus audience on a journey from Birmingham to Belgrade and onto Medellin and Mumbai, outlining how we can see the war in Ukraine in the shirt of Schalke in Germany, China’s foreign policy in the shirt of West Bromwich Albion and worldwide migration patterns in the French national kit.
It was fascinating to better understand how football shirts explain the world, geopolitics and the biggest stories of our time. A seemingly innocuous combination of colours, sponsor logos and materials can all reflect the social values, financial struggles and political ideologies of the day. It is clear that geopolitical issues increasingly seep into every aspect of the game.
Joey also led a practical workshop for students interested in a career in journalism focusing on how and why news stories are organised using the ‘inverted pyramid’. We are thankful to Joey for a fascinating evening.
