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May 05, 2024
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ARGS 877 - How Soccer Explains the World: Sports, Nationalism and Globalization in the Modern World3 credits
The global power of soccer might be a little hard for Americans, living in a country that views the game with the same skepticism used for the metric system and the threat of killer bees, to grasp fully. But in Europe, South America, and elsewhere, soccer is not merely a pastime but often an expression of the social, economic, political, and racial composition of the communities that host both the teams and their throngs of enthusiastic fans. Yet some say the United States is the most sports crazy society in the world, with nearly every sport ever invented being played here. What do sports say about societies and cultures, about globalization (Fox Soccer Channel broadcasting games from Asia and Setanta Sports showing hurling every week) and modernization. Franklin Foer, author of How Soccer Explains the World posits that globalization has eliminated neither local cultural identities nor violent hatred among fans of rival teams, and it has not washed out local businesses in a sea of corporate wealth nor has it quelled rampant local corruption. The crude hatred, racism and anti-Semitism on display in many soccer stadiums is simply amazing, and we will look at how current economic conditions are affecting these manifestations. In Scotland, the management of some teams has kept religious hatreds alive in order to sell tickets and team merchandise. Yet in Iran, for example, soccer works as a modernizing force: thousands of women forced police to allow them into a men’s-only stadium to celebrate the national team’s triumph in an international match. Soccer is not the only sport with such a powerful impact in the modern world and we will explore others as well. Sources will include Foer’s book, Fever Pitch, The Game of Their Lives, and movies such as “Bend it Like Beckham,” “A Shot at Glory,” and “Glory Road.”
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