Soccer, nationalism and the media in contemporary Spanish society: La Roja, Real Madrid & FC Barcelona

Abstract

This essay examines the relationship between nationalism and soccer in contemporary Spain. Firstly, it pays close attention to the roles of the national team and the rivalry between Real Madrid and FC Barcelona in articulating conflictual social agendas. Secondly, it compares how Spanish and Catalan media utilize the Spanish soccer team success to articulate clashing forms of nationalism. It scrutinizes a wide range of journalistic interventions as well as the TV coverage of the national soccer team in the Spanish and Catalan media to determine how they constantly re-articulate the role of soccer in defining the distinguishing characteristics of the nation. Lastly, it studies a series of soccer-related cultural and social practices such as street rallies, gatherings and celebrations in order to determine their role within contemporary nationalism in Spain.

Disclosure statement

No potential conflict of interest was reported by the author.

Notes

1. Anderson, Imagined Communities.

2. Jusdanis, Necessary Nation, 32.

3. Alabarces, Tomlinson, and Young, ‘Argentina vs England’, 549.

4. González Ramallal, ‘El reflejo’, 20; Shobe, ‘Place’, 329.

5. Bairner, ‘Sport’, 17.

6. Armstrong and Mitchell, ‘Global’, 12.

7. Giulianotti, ‘Supporters’, 33.

8. Stone, ‘Role’, 174.

9. Kellas, Politics; Jarvie, ‘Sport’; Jarvie, ‘Internationalism’.

10. Cronin and Mayall, ‘Sport and Ethnicity’, 2.

11. Nuñez Seixas, ‘Conservadores’, 159–160.

12. Balfour and Quiroga, Reinvention, 1.

13. Hobsbawm, Nations and Nationalism, 10–11.

14. León Solís, Negotiating Spain; Balfour and Quiroga, Reinvention.

15. Delgado, The Sound and the Red Fury, 66.

16. Camacho, ‘España como pasión’, 2.

17. Merodio, ‘La fiesta del nacionalismo’, 5.

18. See the booing of the Spanish anthem here: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Rr4FwNAotaI.

19. See Real Madrid’s supporters wearing both Real and Spanish gear here: http://www.cadenaser.com/deportes/fotos/aficion-recibe-real-madrid-cibeles/csrcsrpor/20080505csrcsrdep_9/Ies and here: http://www.teinteresa.es/deportes/futbol/Aficionados-Real-Madrid-comienzan-Cibeles_1_693540698.html.

20. Domènech, ‘Amor patrótico’, 2.

21. Hobsbawm, ibid., 11.

22. Wharton, ‘Reflections’, 603.

23. Shobe, ibid., 338.

24. La Estelada is the non-official Catalan independentist flag. It adds a estela (star) to the Catalan flag, made of red and yellow vertical stripes. For a thorough analysis of the relationship between FC Barcelona and Catalan nationalism, see Salvador J. (2004) Futbol, metàfora d’una guerra freda. Un estudi antropològic del Barça. See a display of La Estelada in FC Barcelona’s stadium here: http://santiagonzalez.files.wordpress.com/2012/10/estelada-grande.jpg.

25. Playà, ‘El fútbol’; Ros, ‘La Roja’.

26. García, de Moragas, and Gómez, ‘El deporte’; Blanco, ‘Las retransmisiones’.

27. García Ferrando, ‘Veinticinco años’, 24; Payero López, ‘La nación’, 113.

28. Luis Aragonés, manager of the national soccer team, came up with term La Roja to refer to the national team. He wanted a new label to rally Spanish fans behind the team since, in general terms, until the mid-2000s, Spanish soccer aficionados cared very little about the national squad, Llopis Goig, ‘Nation-state and Soccer’, 62.

29. For a detailed historical account of the evolution of the Spanish national team identification labels, especially. ‘La Furia’ and ‘La Roja’, see Vaczi, ‘The Spanish Fury’.

30. Palacio and Cascajosa, ‘El espacio público’, 252.

31. See an image of Spanish supporters at Plaza Colón here: http://www.elconfidencial.com/cache/2008/06/28/8_pantallas_gigantes_espana_seguir_final_eurocopa.html.

32. Palacio and Cascajosa, ibid., 252.

33. Iglesias, ‘Colón’.

34. For a detailed account of the origins and history of Catalan nationalism read Stanley Payne’s ‘Catalan and Basque Separatism’. For a thorough analysis of Catalan nationalism since the Francoist period until the early 2000s see Montserrat Guibernau’s Catalan Nationalism: Francoism, transition and democracy. For a study of the key building blocks of Catalan nationalism see Joan Prat’s ‘El nacionalismo catalán a través de los demarcadores de identification simbólica’.

35. Mumbrú, ‘El giro’.

36. See an image of a Catalan pro-independence crowd during the Diada, Catalonia’s national day, here: http://www.presseurop.eu/files/images/article/catalonia-protest.jpg?1353683296.

37. Martí, ‘Conversa’, 9.

38. Peces Barba, ‘Nacionalismos en España’.

39. Guibernau, Nationalisms, 148.

40. Rodríguez, ‘Gilipolluá’, 1.

41. Molina, ‘De la Furia a la Roja’.

42. Tomás Roncero is a columnist in Diario As, commentator in Cadena Ser and guest in TV talk show Punto Pelota, three of the most important outlets in the Spanish sports media today.

43. See Roncero in Punto Pelota here: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ODYiki9FMsg.

44. These sports commentators address huge audiences. The last study of the Estudio General de Medios (EMG), from October 2012 to May 2013, which monitors the readership, viewers and Internet users of Spanish media, situates sports newspapers Marca and As as numbers one and three in terms of circulation. Generalist newspaper El País is number two. In addition, Marca’s site, marca.com, is the second most visited web site in Spain, El País is third and As is fourth. YouTube is number one. Data available here: http://www.aimc.es/-Datos-EGM-Resumen-General-.html.

45. Schwartz, ‘La derecha’, 3.

46. Both Gasol and Nadal are constantly featured in the Spanish media declaring their commitment to the Spanish nation. See here: http://www.marca.com/2011/03/01/baloncesto/seleccion/1298977941.html?a=PRO47b9c57b8156021d9aae0bcefd61815e&t=1393862018 and here: http://www.abc.es/deportes/tenis/20121223/abci-rafa-nadal-tenis-entrevista-201212231055.html.

47. Antifaxista, ‘Deporte de masas’, 7.

48. Ricóu, ‘Atenua rivalidades’, 3.

49. Badia, ‘La Causa’, 5.

50. Ara, ‘ERC’.

51. Domènech, ibid., 3.

52. La Vanguardia, ‘La prensa internacional’.

53. Kupper, ‘Spain’s soccer’.

54. Carlin, ‘Vencer tabúes’, 4.

55. Vaczi, ‘The Spanish Fury’, 13.

56. 20 minutos, ‘García-Margallo’.

57. Mumbrú, ibid.

58. Alabarces, Tomlinson, and Young, ibid., 563.

59. Brookes, ‘Newspapers’, 261.

60. Camacho, ‘España y España’, 1.

61. La última en llegar, ‘Fútbol y choque’.

62. Casillas embraces Xavi after the triumph in the 2012 Euro championship as the Barcelona player exhibits the Catalan flag. See here: http://www.eurocopa12.com/fotos/wp-content/uploads/casillas-y-xavi-hernndez-con-la-bandera-catalana-siempre-a-su-lado-vivaaaaa41is.

63. Colomé, ‘Una nota sobre deporte’.