New from ‘The Sports Specialist’ on Substack. #JamieVardy in Lombardy! He’s not always easy to like - maybe that’s why he remains underrated - but there are few more remarkable ⚽️ careers. And his late move to #SerieA with #Cremonese is fascinating! open.substack.com/pub/leewelli...

New from The Sports Specialist. This article will be like nothing else you read on #VAR. open.substack.com/pub/leewelli...

“Good people are out there”. On trolling and genuine kindness. Please read. open.substack.com/pub/leewelli... #SkyeStout #KilmarnockWomen

tiny.cc/7jqtzz #FootballFables

Are #Chelsea really now the ‘world’s best team’? And yes, I do realize this article could have been a single word only! But #Infantino claimed #FIFAs #ClubWorldCup would prove who is world’s best….I’ve examined the case. open.substack.com/pub/leewelli...

Fed up of the money & greed in sport? Read this! Sport how it should be😍 open.substack.com/pub/leewelling… Th#islandGameses is about to start in Orkney. 12 sports, 2 thousand competitors, 900 volunteers. It’s the 40th anniversary and needs celebrating! :)#orkney202525

👽⚽️👀 Alien Football Fan: open.substack.com/pub/leewelli...

Who is the Alien Football Fan? 👀👽⚽️ open.substack.com/pub/leewelli...

My new fable is released today. ‘The Red Ball’ explores the pressures of life through cricket. Link to fable: open.substack.com/pub/leewelli... About ‘The Red Ball’ open.substack.com/pub/leewelli... #EngvInd #TestCricket #redball #Headingley

About my new fable The Red Ball: “The game, and the way it was won, was an antidote to the frantic pace of the modern world. It had time to breathe.” 👀 open.substack.com/pub/leewelli... #cricket #Tests #EngvInd #WorldTestChampionship

FIFA’s #ClubWorldCup is underway. Global brand #InterMiami drew opening game 0-0 v #AlAhly of Egypt. The MLS team were controversially invited while #Liverpool & #Barcelona are amongst those missing out🧐 My original Q&A on the invite to #Messi’s team. open.substack.com/pub/leewelli...

As promised, first article in a busy month for ‘The Sports Specialist’ @SubstackInc Perfect time to sign up to paid content for a month and see if it’s for you. It’s a hard-hitting one about the ‘humorous’ content used by gambling firms as a trap. #banter 👀: open.substack.com/pub/leewelli...

Happy June☀️😎 Good month to subscribe to ‘The Sports Specialist’ with two new fables released this month….plus #FIFA, #ClubWorldCup, #Ronaldo and the sly ‘banter content’ of betting companies. open.substack.com/pub/leewelli...

It’s 6 months since the release of #FootballFables (the ‘thinking fan’s book’! Time for a summer push!☀️ You can buy it here: tiny.cc/7jqtzz Please do spread the word (loved this review by the ‘Proper Football’ website) & thanks for your hol pics too! 😎📕 www.properfootball.co.uk/post/footbal...

Am I a #CrystalPalace fan? No. I’m from South EAST London :) But I’m really pleased for them. Because that emotional #FACup win, and indeed Newcastle’s cup win, showed what fans really want. And it’s not what we’ve been sold for 30 years. New article: open.substack.com/pub/leewelli...

What a lovely evening it turned out to be in the Costa del SE13 :) Thank you to all who came, it was great to meet and talk to you, to @andithomas.bsky.social for his hosting & @sirobnik.bsky.social for organising. To be back in childhood library, reading from my book #FootballFables, was a joy.🙏🏼

Nice little jaunt out Blackheath way with a couple of the Welling mob for a soiree listening to @leewellings.bsky.social talk about his new book at Manor House Library. Nice!

This is happening tonight! Grab your (free!) ticket while you can!

I'll be hosting this - please do come along! it promises to be a fun chat about a really fun book

Please do join us for an event at Manor House Library in south east London this Tuesday. I’ll be with fellow author Andi Thomas to talk about the beautiful & ugly sides of ⚽️ at the library of my childhood. 🗓️Tues May 13. Kick off 7pm Link for free entry: calicolibraries.com/events/footb...

For some of us the football season is over. I’ve taken the opportunity to pause sport, and serve Kant. What does this mean? And why is it offensive to some? Have a read 😘 #Eurovision #Eurovision2025 #Serving #Kant #Malta #MirianaConte open.substack.com/pub/leewelli...

... you can get your free ticket here! be lovely to see some of you libraries.lewisham.gov.uk/events/218527

hello London types - if you're free next Tuesday evening I'm hosting an author q&a at Manor House Library in Lewisham. I'll be talking to Lee Wellings about his new book and related matters...

Perfect words in this FB article from ‘Proper Football’ whose content and ethos is attracting an increasing amount of fans. I’m grateful to them for their support of my own writing and events, including the Q&A at Manor House Library in SE London on May 13. 🙏🏼 👀 www.facebook.com/share/p/15V1...

A Norwegian club in yellow, shocking football with incredible run in Europe?! 🇳🇴💛 “You couldn’t make it up?!” Perhaps you could…because I’d written about it in my fable The Man Who Murdered Football” 😉 Article: open.substack.com/pub/leewelli... Good luck to #BodøGlimt v #Spurs #EuropaLeague

When you have an opportunity in life, go for it. My emotional account of an overwhelming, historic day for Horsham FC, the fans and the town. 💛💚 open.substack.com/pub/leewelli...

And I reminder I’ll be talking about my books & sport at #ManorHouseLibrary, back where I grew up in south east London. 🗓️Evening of Tues May 13. Be lovely to see you there❤️ calicolibraries.com/events/footb... Please see the short film about my return to library 🙏🏼🥹 m.youtube.com/watch?v=6JmV...

(The tv report as mentioned in original post) :)

A decision has been made! It has to be the lucky Sweden 🇸🇪 shirt for Saturday’s massive Horsham game. It has a 100 per cent winning record 🙏🏼. But we want promotion, not just a win v Hashtag United (real name!) Bucket hat & trainers are 2 from 2. But socks from TV report lost their luck !🥴 #COYH💛💚

New from ‘The Sports Specialist’ on #Substack “America’s Game”. Now they have fully bought into football (the round one) what do they intend to do with it? 🇺🇸 #Wrexham #Birmingham #Burnley #Liverpool #Chelsea #ManUnited #RealBedford open.substack.com/pub/leewelli...

Wonderful to be invited by @calicolibraries.com to speak about my books & sport at #ManorHouseLibrary. Please see the emotional short film about my return to library after 40 years. 🗓️Evening of Tues May 13. Be lovely to see you there❤️ ℹ️ calicolibraries.com/events/footb... #Protectourlibraries

New from The Sports Specialist✍🏼 ‘The Sport of Tantrums’ “Nobody wants Dart to be defined by the comment, but it’s also important not to give her a free pass. Her comment was disgusting.” open.substack.com/pub/leewelli... #HarrietDart #tennis🎾 #Krygios #McEnroe #Djokovic #Serena

Happy new #cricket season 🌤️🏏 :) I’ve released a fable on the 90s England cricket team. A farce (literally!) ‘Dropped!’ is also one for the Teletext and Ceefax nostalgists. 😘 open.substack.com/pub/leewelli...

CALLING ALL #TELETEXT FANS! Sports journalist Lee Wellings has penned this nostalgic tribute to the UK service on ITV and Channel 4 that we both worked on. "Maybe they should bring back Teletext? Maybe they should." Spot on! Nice one @leewellings.bsky.social leewellings.substack.com/p/dropped-by...

On the eve of the new cricket season, a new fable is released, on a sporting team that gave us comedy gold…. The 90s England cricket team. 🏏 ‘Dropped!’ is also one for the Teletext and Ceefax nostalgists. 😘 open.substack.com/pub/leewelli...

A new cricket season and a new fable incoming. ✍🏼👀 open.substack.com/pub/leewelli... There’s something special about the resumption of #cricket, beyond sport. Never more so than in 2021. “A Day at the Cricket” 🎬 Kalleyedo films m.youtube.com/watch?v=QT6-...

Received anything nice in the post recently? “In these disconcerting times of streaming and screaming, little acts of kindness are something to hold on to.” open.substack.com/pub/leewelli...

Not everyone likes #DepecheMode and I’m a sports not a music specialist. But my article was partly about longevity, and producing high quality work deep into careers. The beautiful #GhostsAgain is one of their very finest moments 🖤🙏🏼 #MementoMori 2/2 youtu.be/iIyrLRixMs8

On this week two years ago #DepecheMode (soundtrack to many of our lives) released their #MementoMori album. it’s an extraordinary piece of work, particularly considering the tragedy the band went through during the process. I wrote about it. 🙏🏼 open.substack.com/pub/leewelli...

Saturday March 22 is #NonLeagueDay. You won’t regret a matchday at your local club I promise….here’s my tribute to Non-League; the clubs, the fans and a special mention for volunteers (in the form of a poem) x open.substack.com/pub/leewelling…

The greatest character in the history of sports: open.substack.com/pub/leewelli... #SisterJean #MarchMadness

New from ‘The Sports Specialist’ on #Substack… Manchester United: The Sandwich Club 🥪 “From prawn sandwiches to no sandwiches to shit sandwiches…..” Good time to subscribe. #ManUnited #JimRatcliffe #sandwiches #EuropaLeague #The1958 open.substack.com/pub/leewelli...

DON’T mess with the Gangsta Ref. I really wouldn’t advise it. DO subscribe/upgrade to read it. Whether it’s just for the month or an annual subscription: open.substack.com/pub/leewelli... More info on who the Gangsta Ref is: open.substack.com/pub/leewelli...

Happy #worldbookday2025 😘 📕: tiny.cc/7jqtzz

First article on a busy week for ‘The Sports Specialist’. Why #UEFA’s competition revamp is working. Credit where due. Later in week a brand new online fable - Gangsta Ref. Good time to subscribe/upgrade. Recommend annual, but monthly is another option… open.substack.com/pub/leewelli...

People are telling me this article has been what they needed today; the light sport brings in worrying times. With that in mind may I reshare a second article for #StDavidsDay 🏴󠁧󠁢󠁷󠁬󠁳󠁿 which includes interviewing #ShirleyBassey😍 Links open.substack.com/pub/leewelling… open.substack.com/pub/leewelling���

One other turn-of-spring sports event/tradition I missed is brilliant @ITVSport coverage of the frenetic #UKOpenDarts - with fab @jacquioatley.bsky.social & team. Lots of fun over a packed weekend on the oche and it’s underway. (#FACup of darts 🎯!) “Welcome to @butlins.bsky.social …Miiiinehead!”

Let there be light! “It’s the most wonderful time of the year.” open.substack.com/pub/leewelli...

“He treated us like idiots”. The curious (and disruptive) American takeover of English football clubs is something I’ve been tackling in my writing - Football Fables that ring true: Asterisk FC: open.substack.com/pub/leewelli... My book📕: tiny.cc/7jqtzz www.theguardian.com/football/202...

On this day in 2002, five Scottish curlers became the first women’s team to win gold for @TeamGB at any Olympics. It came down to the very last stone. It’s one of my favourite sports stories, so I’ve written about it for The Sports Specialist. @TeamGBCurling open.substack.com/pub/leewelli...