The Complete Number 9 is an interview series where we ask authors nine questions about their book, the writing process and their football-writing influences.
Dribbling Divides: Football, Islam, and Identity examines how global football intersects with Muslim identity, faith, and politics in an era shaped by migration, digital media, and rising populism. Drawing from rich case studies of elite Muslim footballers, the book examines how players navigate racism, Islamophobia, and national belonging while maintaining visible piety and engaging in activism.
(Kamaludden Nasir, second from right)
What gave you the idea for the book?
I grew up in a lower-working-class family in Singapore, played schoolboy football through the age groups, and was once invited to trials at several professional clubs. My father, an amateur goalkeeper who worked as a chauffeur and was rarely home, would sometimes turn up unannounced at my matches. He also told me stories about Singapore football's glory days in the 1970s. That is how football became mine.
As a sociologist, what I kept noticing was the link between religiosity and football. As elite Muslim players rose to prominence this century, and as Muslim-owned capital entered the game over the last decade, that link stopped being abstract. Ramadan alone was enough to expose rifts inside football's institutions, which is where the book opens. But in truth, my wife pushed me to write the book because I was spending too much time watching and talking about football!
How was the writing process?
I really enjoyed writing this book. I took a few years to write it and started the project about a year before the 2022 Qatar World Cup. I wrote it in an accessible way for the wider public. I am glad Oxford University Press agreed to publish the book as a simultaneous paperback. I wrote the book between my travels and intensively during my time as Professor at Georgetown University in Washington, DC, from 2023 to 2024. I finished writing the book at the start of 2025 but had little control over its publication date, which was frustrating as an author, since the publisher timed the release for the eve of the 2026 World Cup.
What was your biggest influence whilst you were writing the book?
I took inspiration from the elite footballers who went above and beyond their footballing craft. Many were at the forefront of social activism not just advancing causes in their own field, pun intended, but also in terms of voicing out against injustices that they saw globally.
How did you first get published?
I first got published in my mid-20s after my professor in my contemporary social theory class suggested I publish my paper on postcolonial theory. It was published in a journal that was defunct after a short time!
What advice would you offer other writers when writing gets hard?
Inculcate the habit of reading extensively and widely. When things get difficult, I always find it comforting and regenerative to immerse myself in reading. You will come back to your work with fresh eyes.
What is your most memorable football experience?
In 2023, my brother, my father and I went to watch the Bayern Munich vs Liverpool match at the Singapore National Stadium on my Dad's birthday. I would say more than 90% of the 50,000-strong crowd were Liverpool fans.
We were all draped in our Bayern Munich jerseys, and Bayern won 4-3 on a last-minute stunner that silenced the crowd.
What was the last football book you read?
I am currently enjoying reading Aaron Hughes' The Football Paradox: Religion, Nationalism and Globalization, which the author sent to me.
What is a football book more people should read?
There are too many to name!
What is your next football-writing project?
I am currently doing book talks for Dribbling Divides.
An article of mine, called 'Beyond the Hashtag: Digital Piety, Activism, and the Evolution of Islamic Identity among Muslim Footballers', based on an aspect of my book, is due to be published in about three months.
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Dribbling Divides: Football, Islam, and Identity is published by Oxford University Press and is out now.