Peter Alegi

I am the author of Laduma! Soccer, Politics & Society in South Africa and African Soccerscapes: How a Continent Changed the World’s Game, and also co-editor of Africa’s World Cup and South Africa and the Global Game.

My latest work has been published in the Journal of Southern African Studies, the International Journal of the History of Sport, and Radical History Review, as well as in edited books like Sports in Africa and Global Africa. My current research projects include a study of the role of digital technology in African history.

I teach a variety of courses and seminars on South Africa, Africa, and global football. My PhD students conduct research on 19th- and 20th-century South(ern) African history. I have received several teaching awards at MSU, such as the Fintz Award for Teaching Excellence in the Arts and Humanities, the ISS Teaching Excellence Award in the Social Sciences, and the Sullivan Teaching Excellence Award (twice).

I am Series Editor of Michigan State University Press’s “African History and Culture Series.”  I serve on the Executive Board of the Sports Africa Network and on the Editorial Board of the International Journal of African Historical Studies and African Studies. I am also a past Editor of African Studies Review, the journal of the U.S. African Studies Association.

I host the Africa Past and Present podcast (with Peter Limb, 2008-2017) and convene the Football Scholars Forum, an online think tank launched in 2010. My media appearances include National Public Radio, China Global Television Network, BBC World Service, France24, Radio France International, SABC (South Africa), Radio Democracy (Senegal), China Radio International, New York Times, Washington Post, CNN, USA Today, National Geographic, Le Monde, Liberation, and Veja.

Last but not least, I hold the title of Honorary Research Associate at the University of KwaZulu-Natal in South Africa, where I gave the 17th Alan Paton Memorial Lecture.

Gerard A. Akindes

Gerard Akindes earned a Master in Sports Administration and PH.D. in Media Studies at Ohio University. Gerard Akindes has co-edited two books titled “Identity and Nation in African Football: Fans, Communities and Clubs” and “Sports in Africa, Past and Present,” published several journal articles and book chapters, and made numerous presentations at learned conferences. He has also co-created an annual conference on sports in Africa. He co-founded SportsAfrica Network, an African sports scholars and practitioners’ association.