Topsafe's photobook 'Over Land and Sea' captures global football fan culture

Topsafe, a creative studio and publisher, has released a new photobook titled 'Over Land and Sea' alongside a zine 'World Cup Fever', focusing on football fans worldwide. The 340-page book, designed by Asel Tambay and edited by Freddie Fraser Forsyth with Saskia Whinney, combines contemporary documentary photography by Will Robson-Scott with archival images from the 1990s by Zak Waters, who shot for the magazine 'Total Football'. The zine features photographs by Stuart Roy Clarke from World Cups in 1990, 1994, 1998, and 2002. The project aims to highlight the passion, madness, and despair of fans, shifting focus from players and clubs to the supporters. It traces football's cultural history across borders, emphasizing how rituals and traditions are both universal and shaped by local culture. The 1990s are highlighted as a pivotal decade for football's globalization, with the rise of Serie A, the Premiership, MLS, and J-League. The publications are available on the Topsafe website.