Racism, xenophobia and intolerance in Spanish football: evolution and responses from the government and the civil society

Abstract

Contrary to what is sometimes supposed, racism is not a phenomenon of the past. In fact, it is one of the major challenges of the present and future in Europe and Spain. Besides providing an incomparable sense of belonging, football stadiums are also an excellent platform to express racist and xenophobic attitudes and behaviours. In Spain, for years, many players have suffered abuse and insults although black and ethnic minority players are those who receive the most harassment. Thus, the problem of racism has increased recently in Spanish football, as shown by the emission of monkey noises toward black players and the use of racist slogans and symbols in the stadiums. This study analyses the forms of racism and xenophobia in Spanish football, as well as the actions promoted and carried out by various institutions and agents to prevent and reduce these types of behaviour. The article is divided into four major parts. The first one reviews some concepts of the scientific study of racism and xenophobia, placing them in the context of Spanish football. The second section includes an overview of the emergence and evolution of racism and xenophobia in Spanish football. The third part describes the situation in Spain, providing some empirical data about its incidence in recent years. The fourth and final section presents an analysis of different antiracist initiatives carried out recently in Spain from a left-wing perspective with the aim of combating racism in football.

Notes

1. Wieviorka, The Arena of Racism.

2. ‘¿Cómo acabar con la xenofobia?’, El País, 20 February 2005, 58.

3. Durán and Jiménez, ‘Fútbol y Racismo: un problema científico y Social’; Durán and Pardo, ‘Racismo en el fútbol español (1ª y 2ª división): Temporadas 2004/05 y 2005/06’; Viñas, Tolerància zero. La violència en el futbol; Viñas and Spaaij, ‘Medidas y políticas de intervención acerca del racismo y la xenofobia en el fútbol español’; Spaaij and Viñas, ‘Passions, Politics and Violence: A Socio-historical Analysis of Spanish Ultras’.

4. Maguire, ‘Preliminary Observations on Globalisation’; McArdle and Lewis, Kick Racism out Football; Garland and Rowe, ‘Selling the Game Short’ and Sage, ‘Racial Inequality and Sport’.

5. Maguire, ‘Sport Labour Migration Research Revisited’; Chiba, ‘Pacific Professional Baseball Leagues and Migratory Patterns and Trends: 1995–1999’; Long et al., ‘Promoting Racial Equality Within Sports Organizations’ and Durán and Jiménez, ‘Fútbol y Racismo: un problema científico y social’.

6. Garland and Rowe, Racism and Anti-Racism in Football, 4.

7. Viñas, Tolerància Zero, 273.

8. Back et al., ‘Racism in Football: Patterns of Continuity and Change’, 84.

9. Back et al., Beyond the Racist : Race, Social Theory and Football Culture, 423.

10. Ibid., 425.

11. Walvin, Football and the Decline of Britain.

12. Wieviorka, The Arena of Racism, 33.

13. Durán and Jiménez, ‘Fútbol y Racismo: un problema científico y social’, 71–2.

14. Williams, Lick my Boots! Racism in English Football.

15. Back et al., ‘Beyond the Racist /hooligan couplet: race, social theory and football culture’, 437.

16. Van Sterkenburg et al., Football and Racism. An inventory of the problems and solutions in eight West European countries in the framework of the Stand up Speak up campaign.

17. They were hired as oriundos when they were considered distant relatives of a Spaniard. In this way, they were not considered foreigners, of which, in that context, there could only be two.

18. Viñas, Tolerància Zero.

19. Viñas and Spaaij, ‘Medidas y políticas de intervención acerca del racismo y la xenofobia en el fútbol español’.

20. It is specifically in 1997 when the flow of immigrants surpasses the flow of emigrants for the first time in the history of Spain, so that it is usually considered that from 1997 on, Spain became a ‘country of immigration’.

21. ‘Cantera en las gradas ultras’, El País, 12 March 2006, 17.

22. ‘El insulto también es violencia’, El País, 9 April 2008, 40–1.

23. ‘No soy un racista, pero eres un negro de mierda’, El País, 7 February 2008, 40–1.

24. ‘Polémica tras los gritos xenófobos en el España-Inglaterra’, El País, 19 November 2004, 68.

25. ‘Insultos racistas a Eto’o en el Zaragoza-Barça’, El País, 27 February 2006, 60.

26. Spaaij and Viñas, ‘Passions, Politics and Violence’, 79–96.

27. Viñas and Spaaij, ‘Medidas y políticas de intervención acerca del racismo y la xenofobia en el fútbol español’, 63.

28. Murphy et al., Football on Trial. Spectator violence and development in the football world.

29. Durán and Pardo, ‘Racismo en el fútbol español (1ª y 2ª división)’.

30. Ibid., 87–8.

31. Ibid., 87.

32. Ibid., 91.

33. Ibid.

34. Viñas and Spaaij, ‘Medidas y políticas de intervención acerca del racismo y la xenofobia en el fútbol español’, 67.

35. Holland, ‘Kicking Racism out of Football’.

36. Garland and Rowe, Racism and Anti-Racism in Football, 5.

37. Durán and Jiménez, ‘Fútbol y racismo: un problema científico y social’.

38. After eight years of government by the conservative party (Partido Popular) (1996–2004), the main left-wing party (Partido Socialista Obrero Español, PSOE) came to power after winning the election in March 2004. They remained in power for a total of almost eight years, by renewing their majority in the elections of March 2008. The second legislature ended a few months early and made way for a government of the Popular Party, who obtained the absolute majority in the elections of November 2011.

39. Durán, ‘Racismo y deporte’, 147.

40. Ibid., 148–9.

41. Ibid., 150.

42. Ibarra, ‘Racismo y violencia ultra en el fútbol’, 29.

43. Ibid., 30.

44. Viñas and Spaaij, ‘Medidas y políticas de intervención acerca del racismo y la xenofobia en el fútbol español’. See also Llopis-Goig, ‘Racism and Xenophobia’ and Llopis-Goig, ‘The Recent Evolution of Football Violence in Spain’.

45. See Viñas and Spaaij, ‘Medidas y políticas de intervención acerca del racismo y la xenofobia en el fútbol español’.

46. More information at http://colectivocepa.org/.

47. Interview with the person in charge of the Football without Borders programme, José María Benítez.

48. Currently, CEPA is part of the European networks ‘Football Against Racism in Europe’ and ‘UNITED’, as well as other networks at the local level. On the other hand, it is a member of ‘Football Supporters Europe’ and the Observatory of Racism and Violence in Sport of the Higher Council of Sports of the Government of Spain.

49. Fans’zine Action Week 14/10/2010 – 26/10/2010, FARE’10.

50. Interview with the person in charge of the Football without Borders programme, José María Benítez.

51. These two projects, ‘Cadism against discrimination’ and ‘Andalusians for tolerance’, have been partially financed by the Council on Equality and Social Well-being of the Junta of Andalusia.

52. More information on the website of the project www.hincha.org.

53. Currently the ‘Hincha’ Project receives financing from the Aid Programme of the Higher Council of Sports (Consejo Superior de Deportes, CSD), an organism of the Government of Spain.