FOOTBALL AS AN INSTRUMENT OF SOCIETY‘S POLITICIZATION
Abstract
The active function of football culture referring to the population’s politicization which comes out through self-identification and daily political behavior stands out in this paper. Considering the fact that football began to go beyond the pitch, the studies of sport fandom, economic consequences of international competitions, soft power in terms of stereotypes and state’s political influence have been being conducted since. This paper examines one of such processes that involves a larger part of the world's population at the global and local levels – which is an active support of the football club as a tool of identification and practice of a particular political determination of society. At the same time, the arguments for the indirect identification of a football club with the local authorities can be found here as well because not only does a club with a clear position become a prototype of the desired power, but it also turns to be a tool to fight with for this power.
The aim of the article lays in a deep research of the mentioned process in society from various angles – from spatial (Sharon Zukin, John Bale), social (Eric Dunning, Erin Tarver) to historical and political one (David Goldblatt, Simon Cooper). The paper contains the evidence of football clubs being a source of collective and personal memory and of building self-identification and defining the «other» through the prism of fandom as well as examples of such politicization at the global and local levels. The practical part includes the case study of FC «Barcelona» and FC «Karpaty» on the basis of brief historical analysis and interviews with fans.
The fact that football fandom is able to be directed into the political sphere which in turn leads to the socialization of individuals as well as to the intensification of their patriotism and separatism in daily life is also proved in the article. Hence, football clubs are an active factor in today's society at least due to their historically tied symbols, verbal and visual elements, spatial city objects and emotional significance for supporters. At the same time, the need for further research where both interdisciplinary approach and practical study of football fandom will be at the central focus is highly needed as well.
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