A Plague on All Our Sports

A Plague on All Our Sports is the story of what happened when Covid-19 and sport collided. What was the psychological effect of periods of padlocked gyms, domestic detention and banishment from football terraces? What were the long-term effects on athletes? Were the early promises of changing sport for the better followed through?

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A Plague on All Our Sports is the story of what happened when Covid-19 and sport collided, examining the impact of the pandemic through a unique lens.


The book's two authors have each spent many years in sport: Mark Saggers as a radio and TV sports journalist, Bill Ribbans as a doctor and orthopaedic surgeon. Like most people, their professional lives were turned upside down by the pandemic, and both were intimately involved with the endeavours needed to help the sporting phoenix rise from the ashes.


The book analyses the way Covid-19 brought global sport to its knees. It charts sports' response to lockdowns, recovery planning, the obstacles faced and the modifications required to re-emerge.


What was the psychological effect of periods of padlocked gyms, domestic detention and banishment from football terraces? What were the long-term effects on mental health for professional athletes confined to 'bubbles'? Were the early promises of changing sport for the better followed through on?