Why Soccer Was the First Edition of Word Search and Learn

Every series has to start somewhere. For Word Search and Learn, there was really only ever one choice for the first edition: soccer.

Football, soccer, fútbol — whatever you call it in your part of the world, we can all agree it's the Beautiful Game. And that universal love for the sport is exactly why it felt like the perfect place to begin.

That choice didn't come from a marketing meeting or a spreadsheet of trending topics. It came from my own living room, where soccer is less of a hobby and more of a way of life — mostly thanks to my sons.

A House Run by Soccer Mad Kids

My sons are completely soccer mad. Boots by the back door, a ball that never seems to stay still for long, and conversations at the dinner table that somehow always find their way back to last weekend's match. If there's a World Cup, a Champions League final, or even just a local derby on, it's appointment viewing in our house.

So when I started thinking about which topic deserved to launch the Word Search and Learn series, I didn't have to think very hard. Soccer wasn't just a good idea — it was the obvious one. I wanted to create something my own sons would actually want to sit down with, and a topic they already knew and loved felt like the perfect place to begin.

A Sport Made for Learning Through Play

Soccer also happened to be a perfect fit for what this series is trying to do. Few sports carry as much history, terminology, and global culture as football. From tactical jargon like the gegenpress and false nine, to legendary names like Pelé and Maradona, to the unforgettable moments that have defined the FIFA World Cup for almost a century — there's an enormous well of vocabulary and stories to draw from.

That made it easy to build a book that does exactly what I wanted the series to do from day one: give readers a relaxing, screen-free activity that also leaves them knowing more than when they started. Whether it's a term picked up from a match commentary or a piece of World Cup history they'd never heard before, every puzzle is a small, enjoyable lesson in the language of the game.

Sharing It With the Team

This edition means something a little extra to me, because I'm not just putting it on a shelf — I'm giving a copy to every player on my sons' soccer teams.

There's something fitting about that. A book inspired by kids who love the game, going straight into the hands of more kids who love the game. If it gets even a few of them away from a screen for an afternoon, learning new soccer terms while they're at it, that will mean more to me than any sales figure ever could.

It felt like the right way to begin this series — built from something personal, made for the people who inspired it in the first place.

And if the 2026 FIFA World Cup has stirred up a fresh wave of soccer passion in your own household, this could be the perfect gift — for the young player learning the game, the lifelong fan who already knows it inside out, or anyone who just wants a screen-free way to enjoy the excitement of the tournament a little longer.