James Piotr Montague

{{short description|British writer (born 1979)}}

{{Use dmy dates|date=March 2025}}

{{Infobox writer

| name = James Montague

| image =

| imagesize =

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| birth_place = Chelmsford, Essex, United Kingdom

| occupation = Author, writer

| nationality = British

| notableworks = When Friday Comes, Thirty One Nil, The Billionaires Club, 1312: Among the Ultras

| awards = {{awards|Best New Writer (2009), Football Book of the Year (2015, 2018)|British Sports Book Awards}}

| alma_mater = Exeter University

}}

James Montague (born 28 July 1979) is a British writer.

After studying Politics at Exeter University, Montague discovered a love for writing. His first book, When Friday Comes: Football in the War Zone (Mainstream), follows his travels across the Middle East, visiting some of the most difficult countries in that area and looking at the relationship between football and politics. The book won him the Best New Writer Award at the 2009 British Sports Book Awards, run by the National Sporting Club.{{cite web |url=https://sportsbookawards.com/previous-winners/|title=Previous winners |publisher=British Sports Book Awards |access-date=29 March 2020}} A heavily revised second edition, When Friday Comes: Football, War & Revolution in the Middle East{{Cite web|title=When Friday Comes: Football, War and Revolution in the Middle East|url=https://www.decoubertin.co.uk/when-friday-comes-football-war-and-revolution-in-the-middle-east/|website=deCoubertin Books|language=en|access-date=2020-05-30}} was published in May 2013. A third edition, When Friday Comes: Football Revolution in the Middle East and the Road to Qatar{{Cite web|title=When Friday Comes: Football Revolution in the Middle East and the Road to Qatar|url=https://www.penguin.co.uk/books/453024/when-friday-comes-by-montague-james/9781529197167|website=Penguin|date=11 August 2022 |language=en|access-date=2023-09-28}} was published by Penguin in 2022.

His second book, Thirty One Nil: On The Road With Football's Outsiders, a World Cup Odyssey,{{Cite web|title=Thirty-One Nil|url=https://www.bloomsbury.com/uk/thirty-one-nil-9781408158845/|website=Bloomsbury Publishing|language=en|access-date=2020-05-30}} was published by Bloomsbury in May 2014. The book was named Football Book of the Year at the 2015 British Sports Book of the Year Awards.{{Cite web|title=Thirty-One Nil scoops Football Book of the Year award|url=https://www.skysports.com/football/news/11095/9874710/thirty-one-nil-scoops-football-book-of-the-year-award|date=2015-06-04|publisher=Sky Sports|language=en|access-date=2020-05-30}}

Montague's third book, The Billionaires Club: The Unstoppable Rise of Football's Super-Rich Owners (Bloomsbury),{{Cite web|title=The Billionaires Club|url=https://www.bloomsbury.com/uk/the-billionaires-club-9781472923103/|website=Bloomsbury Publishing|language=en|access-date=2020-05-30}} was published in August 2017. And his fourth, 1312: Among the Ultras, A Journey With the World’s Most Extreme Fans, was published in March 2020.{{Cite web|title=1312 by James Montague review – inside the world of football's ultras|url=http://www.theguardian.com/books/2020/mar/26/1312-by-james-montague-review-inside-the-world-of-footballs-ultras|date=2020-03-26|website=The Guardian|language=en|access-date=2020-05-30}}

He has reported extensively for the New York Times, CNN, Tifo and the BBC World Service, amongst others, and is a founding editor of the world's first slow journalism magazine Delayed Gratification.{{Cite web|title=Delayed Gratification|url=https://www.slow-journalism.com/|website=Delayed Gratification|language=en|access-date=2023-09-28}}