Managing furia latina: the making of a Romanian football system and style of play

Abstract

This article investigates the creation of a Romanian football style and system of play, best espoused by the Romanian national teams of the 1990s. It does so by engaging the works of Virgil Economu (1896–1978), undoubtedly the leading Romanian practitioner in the field. The analysis develops around the notions of furia latina – Latin fury – and “élan” and traces their elaboration and implication at two different historical periods, the interwar and the postwar. Premised on these notions, Economu sought to develop a distinctly Romanian style of football play, one emphasizing speed and individual technique. The successes of Romanian football in the 1980s and early 1990s, the rise of the midfielder Gheorghe Hagi, and the popular meanings attached to them are all intimately connected with Economu’s contributions. Overall, my arguments document football’s crucial role for modern Romanian nationalism.

Keywords:

• football
• style of play
• élan
• nationalism
• Romania

Notes

1. For Hagi’s goal against Colombia see: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=1GzGOm4Ohcg.

2. My favorite example is the hypothetical game between Sheffield of the 1880s and the Korean Democratic Republic of the late 1960s.

3. A view probably correlated with the depictions of Jews and Jewish sports clubs.

4. The likes of Nicolae Dobrin, Ilie Balaci, or Ladislau Böloni come to mind.