IT is a university course which is more about studying the FA than for a BA.
Even before its official launch, more than 5000 people have signed up for a free course exploring the world of football, which is being billed as a world first.
The online course offered by Edinburgh University, which will go live from tomorrow, will explore everything from the workings of the top clubs in the world to how the most popular sport on earth is being used to help disadvantaged communities.
It is said to be the first Massive Open Online Course (Mooc) - which enables anyone with access to a computer to study for free at top universities - to focus on the topic of football.
The Football: More than a Game course is being launched in the same week that this year's Homeless World Cup will take place in Santiago, Chile.
Contributors to the six-week course include Mel Young, the co-founder of the Homeless World Cup and football pundit and former Scotland Liverpool, legend Alan Hansen.
Labour MP Jim Murphy, who has written a book about football games that changed world, also discusses the role of the sport in international development.
Course leader Professor Grant Jarvie, chairman of sport at the University of Edinburgh, said the idea to launch the Mooc was partly based on the popularity of football.
But he said the intention was also to use the sport as a link to education in a variety of topics for those who sign up.
"Within the six-week course, what people will do is find out a lot about the world of football itself," he said.
"But in terms of education and building skills, there is an introduction to finance, an introduction to geography, an introduction to history and politics and an introduction to making sense of data.
"We hope that it will be incredibly popular and interesting when it goes live."
Topics on the course, which involves reading materials, quizzes, video presentations and online debates and discussions, include an examination of the history of football and the sport as a multi-million-pound industry.
Rivalries between clubs, the growth of the Fifa World Cup and the development of women's football - one of the fastest-growing sports in the world - will also be discussed.
In addition, the course will cover how football can make a contribution to helping with homelessness and look at projects involving the sport which have helped disadvantaged communities around the world.
Other topics which will be covered include football as part of the Olympic movement, an examination of football demographics in different countries, and of the wealthiest clubs in the world.
But the dark side of the beautiful game will also be addressed with a look at the issue of Qatar's controversial hosting of the 2022 World Cup, including the alleged tainted bidding process and the deaths of numerous labourers involved in the preparations for the event.
Participants who sign up to the Mooc will be expected to study for around three hours a week.
More than 900,000 people have signed up for Moocs at Edinburgh University since they were launched in July 2012.
The short courses do not lead to formal qualifications, but have no entry requirements and are the same quality as a standard university course.
Jarvie said it was hoped the course would run twice a year over the next three years.
He said: "Our intelligence from previous Moocs is that the audiences are very wide and international.
"It will appeal to those with an interest in football who want to find out more - and we think that will be incredibly popular to both men and women."
l For more information on the Football - More than a Game course visit www.futurelearn.com/courses/football
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