The Politics and Culture of FC St. Pauli: from leftism, through anti-establishment, to commercialization

Abstract

The mass appeal of football often renders the popular game susceptible to all things societal. Transforming football stadia to political arenas is an old phenomenon, particularly, when clubs boasting a glorious past are involved. FC St. Pauli has certainly been instrumental to developments in its immediate environment though not so much for its success on the pitch, as for the socio-political views that its fans have been projecting ever since the mid-1980s. The purpose of this study, therefore, is to contextualize the same fan (and club) ideological background that has attracted worldwide attention in the light of the game’s contemporary transformation.

Notes

1. Maffesoli, The Time of the Tribes.

2. Anderson, Imagined communities.

3. Klein and Meuser. Ernste Spiele, 8 (our translation).

4. Kassimeris, Football Comes Home, 57.

5. Blackshaw, ‘Contemporary community theory and football,’ 326.

6. Ibid., 328.

7. Brown, Grabbe and Mellor, ‘Introduction: football and community,’ 307.

8. McFarland, ‘Building a Mass Activity,’ 215.

9. Giulianotti, Football, 15.

10. McClancy, Sport Identity and Ethnicity, 4.

11. Kassimeris, Football Comes Home, 67.

12. Hesse-Lichtenberger, Tor!, 22.

13. Statistical Office of Hamburg and Schleswig-Holstein.

14. St. Pauli für alle statt Gentrification für Yuppies (our translation).

15. Statistisches Amt für Hamburg und Schleswig-Holstein. (all statistical data in this paragraph refers to 2010, or 2009 where 2010 data was not available)

16. Martins, ‘Here to Stay with St Pauli,’ 180.

17. Kassimeris, European Football in Black and White, 66.

18. Walsh and Brown, ‘Football supporters’ relations with their clubs,’ 90.

19. Kartakoulis, Kriemadis and Pouloukas, ‘Cyprus: A football crazy nation?,’ 241–242.

20. Ben-Porat, ‘Death to the arabs,’ 9–10.

21. Spaaij, ‘Football hooliganism as a transnational phenomenon,’ 424.

22. Sprecherrat, Offener Brief (our translation).

23. Sprecherrat, Wer Solidarität verweigert.

24. Martins, ‘Here to Stay with St Pauli,’ 189.

25. Brux, From a symbol of rebellion to a protected brand.

26. Paterson, Consumption and Everyday Life. 200

27. Olins, On Brand.

28. St. Pauli NU.

29. Fundamental Principles of St. Pauli FC.