There’s no point in pretending that you know everything about football – nobody does – but if you’ve got this far and you’ve absorbed at least a modicum of the information and advice contained within these pages, then you will almost certainly know more than 99% of the rest of the human race about what football is, how it is played, who plays it, who watches it, and why they watch it. What you now do with this information is up to you, but here’s a suggestion: be confident about your newfound knowledge, see how far it takes you, but above all have fun using it.

And if you remember only one thing to drop into any conversation about football’s rightful place in the history of popular culture, remember the famous words of the legendary Liverpool manager Bill Shankly: ‘Football is not a matter of life and death – it’s much more important than that.’

Think you’re ready to shine with your knowledge of football? Test it first with our quiz at bluffers.com.