‘A Croatian champion with a Croatian name’: national identity and uses of history in Croatian football culture – the case of Dinamo Zagreb

Abstract

This article investigates the role of Croatia's leading football club, Dinamo Zagreb, in the negotiation of history as a crucial element of national and other identities in Croatia in the 1990s and early twenty-first century. During this turbulent period, Croatia abandoned communism, seceded from Yugoslavia, survived a war of independence, and rebuilt and redefined itself as an independent and democratic national republic. Historical interpretations needed to adapt to these changes, both on the levels of state and institutions and within popular culture. Emphasizing Dinamo's role as a national and political symbol, the article analyses how history and identities were being represented and used in Dinamo's club magazine and in tabloid comments. The article points out how football club discourse interacted with and challenged national narratives, and highlights the struggle between politics and football culture, particularly with regards to the creation of national histories and the establishing of national and other identities.

Notes

^1. Anonymous, ‘Hrvatski prvak s hrvatskim imenom u Europi’, NK Croatia, August 1997, 10–11.

^2. On various types of uses of history, including that of the everyday, see for example Nielsen, Historiens forvandlinger; Aronsson, Historiebruk – at använda det förflutna.

^3.Rosenzweig and Thelen, Presence of the Past, 15–36, 115–46.

^4.Harrington and Bielby, ‘Constructing the Popular’, 2.

^5. For example, Edensor, National Identity, Popular Culture. Specifically, on the case of pop music culture in Croatia, see Baker, Sounds of the Borderland.

^6. Anonymous, ‘Mladu publiku treba odgajati’, NK Croatia, August 1997, 22; Anonymous, ‘Građanski klub puka’, Dinamo, March 1991, 22–3. On the ways in which Serbia's two dominant clubs relate to history, see Sindbaek, ‘Football Commentators as Historians’.

^7.Čolović, Politics of Symbol, 259–86; Lalić, Torcida.

^8. Fredi Kramer, ‘Građanski, HAŠK ili Croatia?’ Dinamo, September 1990, 3.

^9. Zlatko Canjug, ‘Ime Croatia obvezuje’, NK Croatia, January 1998, 9.

^10. Also according to coach Ćiro Blažević, see Anonymous, ‘Imamo i motiv i – momčad!’ HAŠK-Građanski, October 1992, 4–5.

^11. On Tuđman and Blažević, see Bellamy, Formation of Croatian National Identity, 118–23.

^12. Anonymous, ‘Predsednik republike Dr. Franjo Tuđman na našem stadionu’, NK Croatia, April 1997, 11.

^13. Anonymous, ‘Dr. Franjo Tuđman poĉasni presednik NK Croatia’, NK Croatia, May 1998, 3.

^14. Abramović, ‘Bojne polje u Maksimiru’, Vjesnik, May 14, 1990, 1; D.D., ‘Igrali su delije’, Večernji list, May 14, 1990, 16–17.

^15. Anonymous, ‘Smiriti loptu’, Dinamo, June 1990, 3.

^16. Anonymous, ‘Nekom se, očito, jako žuriti’, Dinamo, June 1990, 22.

^17.Kramer, Sveto ime Dinamo, 112–13.

^18. Anonymous, ‘Od Hilandarskog ulja do bioritma’, Večernji list, July 23, 1997, 45.

^19. Anonymous, ‘Pobjeda i u posljednjoj minuti’, Večernji list, July 30, 1997, 44.

^20. Anonymous, ‘Flaster za Prosinečkog’, Večernji list, July 29, 1997, 28.

^21. Anonymous, ‘Sigurnost, red i mir’, Večernji list, July 26, 1997, 45.

^22. R. Junaci, ‘Dostojanstvo važnije od resultata’, Večernji list, July 30, 1997, 44.

^23. Anonymous, ‘Torcidini potpora Croatiji’, Večernji list, July 29, 1997, 28.

^24. Flak, ‘I u noć sa njima’, Večernji list, July 31, 1997, 34.

^25. Ibid.

^26. Anonymous, ‘Dvojbe novog imena’, Dinamo, July 1990, 3. See also Fredi Kramer, ‘Oni su stvarali Dinamo’, Dinamo, October 1990, 26.

^27. Anonymous, ‘45 godina plavog kontinuiteta’, Dinamo, July 1990, 5.

^28. Fredi Kramer, ‘Kakvo ime Dinamo’, Dinamo, August 1990, 7.

^29. D.N. Kasapinović, ‘Stjepan Radić na otvorenju igrališta Građanskog’, Dinamo, October 1990, 17.

^30. Fredi Kramer, ‘Kakvo ime Dinamo’, Dinamo, August 1990, 7.

^31. Anonymous, ‘Novo ime kluba’, Dinamo, November 1990, 3.

^32. Fredi Kramer, ‘Građanski, HAŠK ili Croatia?’ Dinamo, September 1990, 3.

^33. Fredi Kramer, ‘Građanski ili HAŠK’, Dinamo, September 1990, 8–9.

^34. D.N. Kasapinović, ‘Stjepan Radić na otvorenju igrališta Građanskog’, Dinamo, October 1990, 7.

^35. Zvonimir Magdić, ‘Građanski 36 x zašto’, Dinamo, October 1990, 22–3.

^36. Anonymous, ‘80 godina od postanka Građanskog’, Dinamo, April 1991, 6.

^37. Anonymous, ‘Novo ime – stare ambicije’, Dinamo, July 1991, 3.

^38. Anonymous, ‘HAŠK-Građanski’, Dinamo, July 1991, 8–13.

^39. Anonymous, ‘Uskoro novo staro ime?’ HAŠK-Građanski, April 1992, 7; Fredi Kramer, ‘Još o imenu’, HAŠK-Građanski, April 1992, 13.

^40. The Latin version of the name also had fitted widespread efforts to underline Croatia's Latin and thus Western European historical identity. I am grateful to Bojan Bilić and Ana Ljubojević for pointing this out to me.

^41. Fredi Kramer, ‘Građanski, HAŠK ili Croatia?’ Dinamo, September 1990, 3.

^42. Anonymous, ‘Dr. Franjo Tuđman poĉasni presednik NK Croatia’, NK Croatia, May 1998, 3; Anonymous, ‘Razgovor s presjednikom republike, Dr Franjom Tuđmanom’, NK Croatia, October 1997, See also Zlatko Vitez, ‘Croatia već 1990, ali…’, NK Croatia, December 1996, 4–5; Anonymous, ‘Imamo i motiv i – momčad!’ HAŠK-Građanski, October 1992, 4–5.

^43. For the dates, also see Dinamo's web page: http://www.gnkdinamo.hr/povijest#anchor (accessed November 26, 2011).

^44. Anonymous, ‘Razgovor s presjednikom republike, Dr Franjom Tuđmanom’, NK Croatia, October 1997, 25.

^45. Anonymous, ‘Hrvatski prvak s hrvatskim imenom u Europi’, NK Croatia, August 1997, 11.

^46. Ibid.

^47.Bellamy, Formation of Croatian National Identity, 118–21.

^48. Anonymous, ‘BBB sele na “jug”!’ Dinamo, March 1991, 19; Anonymous, ‘HAŠK-Građanski’, Dinamo, July 1991, 10.

^49.Vrcan, ‘Curious Drama of the President’, 63–4. For an insight account of similar developments within Hajduk's fan club Torcida, see Lalić, Torcida.

^50. Fredi Kramer, ‘Obavili smo pola posla (interview with Zdenko Mahmen), Dinamo, January 1990, 4–5.

^51. Anonymous, ‘Zašto su dinamovi navijači uvijek na meti?’ Dinamo, March 1990, 22–3. See also Anonymous, ‘Ostajemo plavi’, Dinamo, March 1991, 16–17.

^52. Anonymous, ‘Smiriti loptu’, Dinamo, June 1990, 3.

^53. Anonymous, ‘BBB sele na “jug”!’ Dinamo, March 1991, 19; Anonymous, ‘Bad blue boysi proslavi rođendan’, Dinamo, April 1991, 41.

^54.Vrcan and Lalic, ‘From Ends to Trenches’.

^55. Anonymous, ‘Uskoro novo staro ime?’ HAŠK-Građanski, April 1992, 7.

^56. Anonymous, ‘Imamo i motiv i – momčad!’ HAŠK-Građanski, October 1992, 4–5.

^57. Anonymous, ‘Mladu publiku treba odgajati’, NK Croatia, August 1997, 22; Anonymous, ‘Plavi, Plavi…’, NK Croatia, November 1997, 3.

^58. Anonymous, ‘Građanski klub puka’, Dinamo, March 1991, 22–3.

^59.Vrcan, ‘Curious Drama of the President’, 63–4.

^60.Vujević, ‘Semantički profil imena NK’.

^61.Vrcan, ‘Curious Drama of the President’, 65–9; Bellamy, Formation of Croatian National Identity, 118–23.

^62. Anonymous, ‘Wembley, Heysel, Waldstadion, Prater’, NK Croatia, October 1996, 19.

^63.Kramer, Sveto ime Dinamo, 114–15.

^64. See the club web page: http://www.gnkdinamo.hr/povijest#anchor (accessed November 26, 2011).

^65. Anonymous, ‘Smiriti loptu’, Dinamo, June 1990, 3.

^66. Anonymous, ‘45 godina plavog kontinuiteta’, Dinamo, July 1990; Fredi Kramer, ‘Nepravde’, Dinamo, August 1990, 12–13.

^67. Anonymous, ‘Dolazi zvezda’, Dinamo, May 1991, 18–19. See also Anonymous, ‘13 Svibanj 1990’, NK Croatia, May 1997, 10–11.

^68. Fredi Kramer, ‘Umjesto u Dinamo u Partzan’, Dinamo, July 1990, 26–8.

^69. Anonymous, ‘I naši igrači stvarali povijest Partizana’, NK Dinamo, August 1997, 38–9.

^70. Anonymous, ‘Za jaku Croatiju i svjetsku Hrvatsku’, NK Croatia, January 1998, 4–5.

^71.Sindbaek, ‘Football Commentators as Historians’; Čolović, Politics of Symbol, 259–86.

^72. Anonymous, ‘Nekom se, očito, jako žuriti’, Dinamo, June 1990, 22; Anonymous, ‘Dolazi zvezda’, Dinamo, May 1991, 18–19.

^73. Anonymous, ‘Nogometni Bljesak i Oluja’, NK Croatia, August 1997, 4–5.

^74. Anonymous, ‘Plava oluja od pet bljesaka’, Večernji list, July 31, 1997, 1.

^75. Anonymous, ‘Bronca zlatnog sjaja’, NK Dinamo, July 1998, 29.

^76. Anonymous, ‘Dr. Tuđman: Nemojte se opustiti!’ NK Croatia, September 1998, 9.

^77. R. Junaci, ‘Plavi, plavi, vi ste dečki pravi’, Večernji list, July 31, 1997, 31; Anonymous, ‘Igrali i za Vukovar’, Večernji list, July 31, 1997, 32.

^78. Anonymous, ‘Usrećio sam ljude’, NK Croatia, August 1997, 18–19.