SoccerPro Product Review: FourFourTwo vs. 90:00

By Brian Lofrumento | 15th December 2008

SoccerPro Product Review: FourFourTwo vs. 90:00 | read this item

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fourfourtwo_october_08_zm When SoccerPro approached Premiership Talk with a chance to review products, I was extremely pleased to get my hands on two of football’s finest publications: FourFourTwo and 90:00 magazine. These two magazines both have slightly different target markets, but each offer unique perspectives into football’s hottest issues. Premiership Talk compares and contrasts the two.

FourFourTwo

Obviously the more English-oriented of the two magazines, FourFourTwo is without doubt the best magazine on the market for football fans. A massive 162 pages of high quality and attractive glossy pages, FourFourTwo provides the latest news, opinion pieces, and special features. The particular issue that SoccerPro sent me has a feature on the Premier League’s Mexican wonderkids (that means you, Carlos Vela), an exclusive interview with Ryan Giggs (which is full of some classic Giggsy humor), and a revealing interview with David Beckham. One of my favorite features of FourFourTwo is their “The Boy’s a Bit Special” column, where they select two up and coming youngsters in the Premiership and interview them. Generally these picks are two teenagers that either are just beginning to make a splash in the league or are about to. Also in FourFourTwo is the “My Perfect XI” feature where the magazine asks an influential footballer to choose his dream starting eleven. In the issue I received, Carlos Bilardo (former Argentina manager) gave a rundown of his dream eleven, which includes players like Sir Bobby Charlton and George Best – plus a few other surprise names, which you’ll have to buy FFT to see.

90:00 Magazine

The other magazine, as I mentioned above, that SoccerPro gave me to review was 90:00. While FFT prides itself on its English coverage, 90:00 hails itself as “America’s Premier Soccer Publication.” The magazine isn’t as big as FFT, with a mere 46 pages, but it is still extremely comprehensive and a great read. While it does primarily focus on the US, it does have solid European football coverage. In this issue, 90:00 takes a look at hooliganism in football. It also has an exclusive interview with Clint Dempsey, the American midfielder who currently plies his trade with Fulham. Other features include a look at Premier League managers who you’d least like to run into in a dark alley, an article about Gregg Berhalter, and training tips. Most of the magazine, however, is primarily focused on Major League Soccer. The coverage of MLS is very well put together, and some great photographs complement the exceptional writing that 90:00 puts together.

Overall, my pick for a football publication is definitely FourFourTwo. 90:00 is great for fans of the MLS, but its coverage of the Premier League doesn’t come close to FFT’s. That isn’t a criticism by any means, though, as 90:00 isn’t centered around Premiership action, and its main focus of the MLS is excellent.

FourFourTwo Link: FourFourTwo Magazine – October 2008

90:00 Link: 90 Minutes Soccer Magazine – Vol. 5 No. 3

Products courtesy of SoccerPro.com

Want a glimpse of these magazines for yourself? Tune in to this Sunday’s Premiership Talk Podcast LIVE at 1:00pm EST, 6:00pm GMT and have a chance to win one of these magazines! More details are available on the Podcast page, located at the top of this site.