‘Race’, politics and local football – continuity and change in the life of a British African-Caribbean local football club

This paper focuses on the role of a local sports club in shaping the lives of British African-Caribbean males in one British city over a 40-year period. The paper describes how the ‘Meadebrook Cavaliers’ has transitioned from its origins as an East Midlands parks-based football team in 1970 to a successful senior-level local football club by the early 1980s, before finally achieving a further social and financial organizational complexity in its charitable status, attained in 2009. Attention is paid specifically to the social formation of this largely masculine ‘black’ sport space over time and on how, and in what ways, these developments in local sport in one club in one British city are also intimately connected to wider social, economic and political developments in the UK. In doing so, the paper demonstrates, both theoretically and empirically, how the emergence of ‘black’ local football resonates with social change around ‘race’ politics in Britain during the period 1970–2010. By the same token, this mainly black male sporting space continues to reflect and influence change in the wider political, social and sporting terrains within which the club has been located – and within the dynamic black African-Caribbean communities which constitute it.     

Participants’ views of the potential of international youth football tournaments for development in the Global South

This paper investigates the potential of international youth football tournaments for youth development in the Global South. The tournaments under study were East Africa Cup in Tanzania, and Norway Cup in Norway. Through qualitative interviews with tournament participants, we addressed the following research question: What are the participant’s views of the potentials of Norway Cup and East Africa Cup in dealing with development issues facing youth in the Global South? Our findings demonstrate that all interviewees consider the tournaments potentially beneficial for youth development in the Global South. In the analysis, we identified four different categories, mostly representing positive outcomes of tournament participation. We argue that a functionalist neo-liberal notion of sport is visible in the data material. Thus, our findings correspond with Sport for Development and Peace (SDP) research showing how reproductions of the SDP functionalist discourse ‘continue to be leveraged through sport and sealed into the success story of SDP’.     

Echoes of the Tragedy: The Sport Memoir and the Representation of the 1950 World Cup

This article delves into the meaning of the 1950 World Cup, held in Brazil after a 12-year hiatus due to the Second World War and two decades after a South American country (Uruguay) had hosted the tournament. The aim of this paper is to reflect on the role of sport memoirs in the cementing of a collective imagination on the Brazilian National Team's defeat in 1950. Anchored on a triple dimension – organisational, tactical and technical – the analysis explores the way in which the loss of the title to the Uruguayan team was experienced by a number of actors – among them players, management personnel and fans – and set in writing by many generations of sports writers. Through the diachronic choice of works published by journalists (which include memoirs, news stories, biographies and autobiographies), the objective is to point to the congealing of a rhetoric made up of negative remarks associated to the football event, such as ‘trauma’, ‘drama’, ‘tragedy’ and even ‘catastrophe’. Contemporary historical perspective, which questions the deep-rooted opposition between memory and history will be turned so as to support the consideration of whether the former can in fact direct, or even shape, the latter's features.     

Football and its continuity as a classless mass phenomenon in Germany and England: rethinking the bourgeoisification of football crowds

Considering football’s popular notion of a working-class sport in England and Germany – at least in the 1950s – the shift towards present classless fandom in football is mainly explained by the genesis of a middle-class fan culture induced by the process of football’s accumulating (hyper-) commodification. However, this so-called ‘bourgeoisification thesis’ cannot be verified on the basis of empirical data – neither on the basis of the employment status of people attending football matches in the stadia of the top league clubs in England and Germany between 1977 and 2009 nor on the basis of representative data pertaining to the social-class profile of regular readers of German football magazines carried out in 1954. It is demonstrated that football has enjoyed continuous popularity among all social classes. Hence, the bourgeoisification of football fandom can basically be ascribed to the inter- and intra-generational upward mobility in postmodern societies induced by socio-structural change.     

The up-front legacies of France 2019: changing the face of ‘le foot féminin’

ABSTRACT

The drive to develop women’s football in France, a game 100 years old albeit one long-stigmatised, was thrust into high gear in 2011. Since then, a confluence of events and cultural changes, from on-field results and officials’ investment of greater resources to winning the 2019 World Cup host bid, greater mediatisation of women’s players, and more – including the spectacular 2010 meltdown of Les Bleus in South Africa – have combined to energise and grow the game. This newfound dynamism was unforeseen a decade ago and illustrates some of France’s biggest World Cup legacies: the up-front investments underpinning the sport’s development during the 2010s, and the ways the country has repackaged itself as a champion of women’s football and women in football, forever changing the face of ‘le foot féminin’.     

Missing in Action? New Perspectives on the Origins and Diffusion of Women's Football in Australia during the Great War

Previous work on female participation in Australian Rules football has highlighted the seemingly discontinuous character of the women's game as it spread from Western Australia to Victoria during the period of the Great War. In this paper, an overview of the current literature on the topic is provided, and there is a focus on hitherto ‘missing links’ in the existing sequence of events – the knowledge of which has the potential to create a more integrated narrative of the code. In particular, the photographic, filmic and textual evidence for matches of women's football played in South Australia during the Great War is discussed. These games, with proceeds directed to such charities as the ‘Workers' Memorial Fund’ as well as ‘comforts for the Anzacs’, attracted sizeable crowds and were sometimes played under the patronage of the governor of the state, the mayor of Adelaide and senior military officers. The paper concludes with a reflection on how the availability (or unavailability) of particular digitised sources, and the serendipitous nature of research itself, can have a problematic influence on investigations associated with marginalised sports such as women's football.     

‘Highlander Ithimu yezwe lonke!’: intersections of Highlanders FC fandom and Ndebele ethnic nationalism in Zimbabwe

Football is one of the most emotive cultural forms through which people experience and express nationalism. The study demonstrates intersections of Zimbabwean Premier Soccer League (PSL) team – Highlanders FC fandom and Ndebele ethnic nationalism in Zimbabwe. This nationalism challenges state narratives of a ‘united Zimbabwe’ and advocates for secession of Bulawayo and Matabeleland provinces to form an ‘independent Ndebele nation’. Literature on Zimbabwean football has under-theorized its interface with football discourse. The author was an observer as participant in Zimbabwean football stadia for a four-year period observing terrace rituals, especially songs and chants during Highlanders FC matches. In-depth interviews were also conducted with selected fans to get clarity on observed issues. The study concludes that while discussing secession is criminalized and condemned as ‘tribalism’ in Zimbabwe, Highlanders FC fandom is a critical site where some people express feelings and aspirations towards establishment of a separate ‘independent Ndebele nation’.     

Modern English football fandom and hyperreal, ‘safe’, ‘all-seater’ stadia: examining the contemporary football stage

Through a critique of various social, cultural, political and technological changes in English football as a result of the Taylor report into the safety of football stadia post-Hillsborough in 1989, this paper explores the way in which the modern ‘safe’ all-seater stadium is often experienced by fans in a hyperreal and relatively passive fashion. The paper then considers some of the challenges posed by these developments and the potential for fans to renegotiate and adapt in the face of a middle classing of football discourse. Finally, the paper examines the social control agenda inherent within the neoliberal development of all-seater stadia, whilst highlighting the response of the English Football Supporters Federation and their ‘Safe Standing Campaign’. The paper will conclude by offering a tentative critique of an innovative response by Manchester City F.C. supporters and their participatory ‘Poznan’ celebration in all-seating areas based on auto-ethnographic interpretation.     

‘The Whole of Poland Saw It,and You Gentlemen are Blind’: Match-Fixing in Polish Football – A Case Study from 1993

Abstract

This paper focuses on one of the most famous match-fixing cases in the history of Polish football – when in 1993 the Polish Football Association decided to subtract points due to match-fixing in the last match round of the season, an action which meant that Legia Warsaw were stripped of the Polish title. The paper initially presents a brief overview of the history of match-fixing in Polish football and then moves on to an informed narrative of the 1993 case. Two primary analytical focuses are adopted: first the 1993 case study is analyzed in the light of a typology established by criminologist Declan Hill explaining why corruptors decide to fix football matches. Second societal reactions to the 1993 scandal are analyzed. The paper questions to what extent reactions to the 1993 match-fixing scandal were affected by the profound social, political, and cultural transformations of the immediate post-communist period. To do so, the sociological concept of ‘cultural trauma’ is scrutinized in the context of football match-fixing. It is argued that the 1993 scandal was a ‘trigger’ which allowed cultural trauma to emerge and that reactions to the scandal were heavily influenced by wider societal events.     

Long Balls in the Dying Moments: Exploring the Decline of South Africa's National Football League, 1970–1977

During the 1970s, a number of prominent British and Irish footballers – the likes of which included Gordon Banks, George Best, Bobby Charlton, Geoff Hurst and Bobby Moore – played as ‘guest players’ on a short-term basis for various clubs in South Africa's National Football League (NFL), a ‘whites-only’ professional league that spanned the period 1959–1977. Coupled with this, NFL clubs from the outset also secured the services of additional foreign players of lesser standing on longer term contracts in an attempt to improve the standard of play. The strategy of importing high-profile ‘guests’ during the 1970s ultimately proved unsuccessful in sustaining the league as it disbanded after the 1977 season. Utilising archival documentation, contemporary media reports and existing football works, this essay aims to establish the reasons behind the NFL's demise. Two particular factors under consideration are the erosion of the league's entertainment value and the deteriorating economic conditions within South Africa at the time. These elements are juxtaposed with additional factors such as the rise in popularity of multiracial football, the resulting drain of sponsorship away from the white professional game, as well as political machinations within South Africa during this period.     

Female football players in England: examining the emergence of third-space narratives

This paper will examine the ways in which female football players negotiate and contest gender conventions practised in English football. I look at female participation through the application of Bhabha’s ‘third-space’ thesis, and argue that Bhabha’s work has utility in the context of this case study for understanding complexities and nuances ordinarily ignored by gendered discourse performed in English football culture. I utilize semi-structured interviewees with women who have or are still currently playing football across an age range of 17–45. I draw on a feminist ‘standpoint’ in order to attain critical narratives. Critiques arise in two key areas. Firstly, the impact of changes in governance under the Football Association. Secondly, the agency of players themselves to actively contest gender conventions, whether through playing football despite the negative connotations attached to female physicality, or through the provision of mixed football.     

United in Protest: From ‘Living and Dying with Our Colours’ to ‘Let All the Colours of the World Unite’

Istanbul's ‘Big Three’ football clubs, Be?ikta?, Fenerbahçe and Galatasaray, dominate the Turkish Super League. The matches between these fiercely rival teams, also known as ‘derbies’, are often intense and culminate in the eruption of violence, which has even been fatal on occasion. To many people's surprise, the anti-government protests which were sparked by outrage over police action against environmental protestors in May 2013 brought these eternal rivals together. Thousands of Be?ikta?, Fenerbahçe and Galatasaray supporters marched arm-in-arm to Taksim Square and demanded justice and freedom. Out of this solidarity is born Istanbul United, a seemingly new fan group with a new logo that combines the three rival logos. Çar??, the legendary fan group of Be?ikta?, also played an important role in the protests and received the support of all football fans as well. This paper will focus on the politicisation of football in Turkey during the second half of 2013. By looking at both the political role of football fans of the ‘Big Three’ during and after the Gezi protests, and the ways in which mutual respect and solidarity is born among diverse protesters, this paper discusses the possibilities of translating this positive genre to a peaceful spectatorship in Turkish football.     

Football-related patriotism in Germany and the 2016 UEFA EURO

This paper coins the term ‘football patriotism’ to describe the open, expressive handling of national symbols (e.?g. flags, anthems, national colors) in the context of international football events. Based on a representative online survey of the adult German population (N?=?1092), which was carried out in the course of the 2016 UEFA EURO, this paper presents, for the first time, empirical findings on three essential questions: (1) Which proportion of the German population was involved in which forms of football-related patriotic behavior? (2) To what extent does this proportion vary between different social demographic groups? (3) Which political and ideological attitudes are associated with football patriotism? The results illustrate that roughly 15% of German adults were involved in three or more different patriotic actions during the EURO. This proportion was lower among older, East German and immigrant respondents and higher in families with children. Football patriots positioned themselves less often as politically ‘left’ and endorsed patriotic and nationalistic statements more strongly.     

“新校园足球”下的特色足球学校发展——以广州荔湾区特色足球学校为例

从"新校园足球"2014年诞生到实施至今,取得了不少成绩也存在不少问题。从广州市荔湾区的优秀特色足球学校入手,进行个案研究,旨在为"新校园足球"的发展提供借鉴意义。     

From Development of Sport to Development through Sport: A Paradigm Shift for Sport Development in South Korea

During the past several decades, South Korea has gained tremendous international recognition by achieving an excellent performance in a variety of international sport competitions and hosting numerous mega-sporting events. Although success in elite sport (i.e. Development of Sport approach) has contributed to making South Korea one of the sport powerhouses in the world, South Korea has paid very little attention to the role that sport can play as a tool for social and personal development (i.e. Development through Sport approach). Similarly, scholars also paid little attention to the ‘development through sport’ approach in South Korea while predominantly focusing their attention in taking the ‘development of sport’ approach. In recent years, however, the South Korean government has begun to show interest in the ‘development through sport’ approach to become a truly advanced sporting nation. Thus, the purpose of this paper is to explore how South Korea's paradigm in sport has historically shifted from ‘development of sport’ to ‘development through sport’ in its socio-political context.     

‘Last goal wins’: re/engaging women of a ‘forgotten’ age through football?

This paper explores the physical activity experiences of a group of women based in England, and who are over the age of 30. This particular age group represent a ‘forgotten’ age, that is, they are largely ignored in academic scholarship, policy and physical activity provision. The paper explores how this group of women ‘re/engaged’ in physical activity after a sustained period of inactivity. The study is situated in a weekly football initiative (Monday Night Footy) based in the north of England, managed and organised by a group of women for women to train and play five-a-side football. Data were generated through semi-structured interviews and the use of photo-biographical boards with 11 women, all of whom are regular participants to the football sessions. We use a middle ground feminist lens and Archer's notion of ‘fr/agility’ to help make sense of the women's experiences. From these women's stories three key findings emerge: (a) Biographies of (in)activity – the ways in which relationships with physical activity can be characterised by fractures and fissures despite seemingly positive early physical activity experiences; (b) Pathways of re/engagement – the motives and enablers to these women once again participating in physical activity after a sustained absence; and (c) Monday Night Footy as a space for re/engagement – the ways in which this context contributes to these women's continued involvement in football and broader physical activity. The paper concludes by offering policy makers and physical activity providers with some recommendations alongside considerations for future research.     

Poles apart: foreign players,Polish football and Euro 2012

The 14th running of the UEFA European Championships represented a watershed moment for football, and sport more broadly, in Eastern Europe. Whilst the competition itself might have been restricted to Europe’s elite national teams, world football’s gaze was drawn towards the joint hosts, Poland and the Ukraine, for the duration of the tournament. At this juncture, therefore, this paper seeks to consider the ‘place’ of football in Eastern Europe, and in this case, Poland specifically, by conducting an analysis of the economic value of Poland’s top division – the Ekstraklasa, and by examining the factors that influence foreign players’ decisions to migrate to that particular league. The paper identifies that whilst the Ekstraklasa might sit outside of Europe’s core football economies, it still offers much as a migration destination for certain sorts of players. However, the paper also shows that whilst the 2012 UEFA European Championships provided significant exposure for Poland in the football context, it is less clear if hosting the event will have a lasting effect on the development of Poland’s top league and its desirability to foreign players.     

Social agency and football fandom: the cultural pedagogies of the Western Sydney ultras

Abstract

This article addresses key questions of social agency and cultural pedagogy within the neoliberal structures of ‘modern football’ in the Australian context. It reports on a two-year ethnographic study of the Red and Black Bloc, an Australian ultras group in Western Sydney, one of the most culturally diverse areas in Australia. The origins of the Western Sydney ultras are described, along with their struggles to build their own cultural identity and to fight for social agency within a commodified football league. By combining a multifaceted theoretical model with a range of ethnographic data – including document analysis and in-depth interviews – this study reveals the processes by which the Western Sydney ultras enhance members’ social cohesion towards an increased social consciousness. The paper acknowledges the role that ultras, as authentic cultural formations, may have in the propagation of new cultural pedagogies that have the potential to enhance citizenship, communal life and participatory democracy.     

Polish ultras in the post-socialist transformation

Abstract

The world of radical football fans across Europe is dominated by anti-system groups. While their sympathies in the west of the continent are mostly leftist, the ultras in the east tend to display right-wing attitudes. Poland makes a particularly interesting case in point, as the most intensive and emotional ideological criticism of the processes of ‘transformation’ and ‘modernisation’ is to be observed at the stadiums. As a result of historical developments, opposition against the system in the country can only be expressed using Catholic–patriotic symbolism, which in the case of collective actions of radical football supporters has produced sociocultural and aesthetic effects not to be found anywhere else in Europe.     

The Female Vikings,a Women's Fan Group in Denmark: Formation and Development in the Context of Football and Fan Histories

Traditionally, football and fandom have been male domains and celebrations of masculinity. So far there has been some sociological and historical research on women's football; however, little is known about women's fandom, in particular about its formation and development. This article focuses on the historical development of a Danish women-only fan group called ‘The Female Vikings’, which support a professional football club, Lyngby Boldklub (BK), in a city north of Copenhagen. The article explores the backgrounds and motivations of female fans, as well as their ways of staging femininity in a man's world. Drawing on available information about football and fans in Denmark, we have reconstructed the developments of both Lyngby BK and its supporters. Special focus was placed on the histories and cultures as well as the experiences of female fans in this club. Insights into the foundation of the women's fan group were provided by problem-centred interviews which also contained open questions. The foundation and activities of the Female Vikings show how women can perform gender in the fan's stands and how they play a significant role in the fan movement. The interviews also reveal the loyalty of the female fans during the club's ‘crisis’ and their ‘collective memories’.