The Square Ball: Season 35, Issue 07

Written by: The Square Ball
Cover artwork by: Graeme Chapman

This is the seventh issue of TSB’s 35th season and Leeds United’s 2024/25 title-winning campaign.

Who knows, by the time the eighth and final issue of the season comes out we might be celebrating winning said title. Until then Limited Output‘s excellent cover artwork is a reminder that we all need to Keep Fighting — because our beautiful boys have done a lot of good stuff this season to earn our faith (unless we lose to Swansea, in which case it’s time to officially Start Panicking).

Inside the mag, you’ll find from your favourite regular contributors:

Rob Conlon on Leeds United’s unlikely answer to Mark Twain, Jack Charlton, and his even unlikelier role as the nation’s favourite wildlife presenter
Chris McMenamy on supporting a team in a cup final, and learning that it can actually have a happy ending
Andy P on Paraag Marathe’s imminent investment in Rangers, and what the hell that is all about
Our agony aunt — AKA Problem Chimp, AKA Michael Normanton — on an irrational hatred of Ian Rush and how to deal with Burnley fans
Plus an evening with Stuart Dallas, Red Kite’s finest hour, late night texts from Georgi Rutter, an A-Z of Scum, and loads more
Subscribe to get this issue cheap with TSB+ — click here for info

Support The Square Ball

Subscribe to TSB+ Mag

⬢ Yearly TSB+ membership
⬢ Regular issues of the magazine for £1 each (+p&p)
⬢ Ad-free podcasts, extra episodes, The Match Ball Live video, daily emails and more
⬢ Click here for one month free trial

How do I subscribe? Or read online?

Click here for more info on subscribing, and choose either TSB+ Mag or TSB Magazine.

Getting the magazine delivered to your home is a very good idea, as it will arrive free of beer stains and torn corners, unless your postie is having a bad morning.

The best way to buy The Square Ball is to subscribe and get every regular issue delivered to your home for the next twelve months.

That way we know how many to print, and we have the money up front to pay the printer. We’ll post anywhere in the world and you won’t miss an issue.

You can get £10 off a subscription to the paper magazine if you buy an annual membership of TSB+. TSB+ gets you all our podcasts advert free, early access and live streaming video of The Match Ball podcast, a digital sub to the magazine, a daily email, discounts and more — and that tenner off getting the paper version delivered.

If you don’t want to subscribe — why not?! — you can buy this issue on its own by clicking here, and we’ll post it out as soon as it’s printed.

Can I buy the magazine at Elland Road?

As always since 1989, barring pandemics and badly timed World Cups, The Square Ball magazine will be on sale outside Elland Road, for the match against Swansea on Saturday 29th March 2025. Just look out for our windswept but friendly sellers by the Lowfields tunnel, Billy’s Statue, the Kop gates, and anywhere else someone is holding a fanzine in the air, until about fifteen minutes before kick-off.

I’m a TSB+ member, where is the online magazine?

TSB+ members can read the magazine online now, either of two ways:

Download the PDF here
Read the articles online here

What else is in this issue?

Our now twelve times-nominated and two-times FSF Award winning fanzine, plus one for the podcast and as of 2022 one for ‘Fan Media’, includes lots of pages of articles and artwork about what used to be the pain but now is the glory which still involves pain of being a Leeds United supporter, for more than 100 long, long years.

Click here to preview everything inside this issue

Can I read something now? For free? Ah go on?

Free to read from this issue is Chris McMenamy’s article on ignoring the scars of Leeds United and following Cliftonville in a final, including their answer to Pablo Hernandez — click here to read that for free.

Also free in this issue, Stateside Leeds fan Anshul Tambay on making the pilgrimage from Seattle to Beeston to see what all the fuss is about — click here to read that one.

You can order paper copies of issue seven from our online shop now, and they’ll be sent out as soon as they’re printed. To read a digital version online, please become a TSB+ member, with a one month free trial, here.

As Howard Wilkinson always used to say, thank you for your magnificent support. ⬢