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https://doi.org/10.12759/hsr.40.2015.4.176-196
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Siegen für Deutschland? Patriotism, nationalism and the German national football team, 1954-2014
Siegen für Deutschland? Patriotismus, Nationalismus und die Deutsche Fußball-Nationalmannschaft 1954-2014
[journal article]
Abstract This article discusses the relationship between expressions of patriotism, nationalism and national identity and the fortunes of the German national football team by examining developments from the 1950s until the present. It analyses the varying degrees of identification of the Germans with their n... view more
This article discusses the relationship between expressions of patriotism, nationalism and national identity and the fortunes of the German national football team by examining developments from the 1950s until the present. It analyses the varying degrees of identification of the Germans with their national team from the wave of enthusiasm that greeted the 1954 World Cup win to the more sober reception the team received thereafter which climaxed in the ‘denationalization’ of the national team during the 1974 World Cup. It then explains the renationalization of discourses and practices associated with the team from the late 1980s onwards to end with a discussion of the ‘partyotism’ during the 2006, 2010 and 2014 World Cups. The article argues that while the identification of the Germans with their national football team is a useful indicator of more general historical and cultural trends, one should not overestimate its relevance for determining the degree of nationalism in German society.... view less
Keywords
patriotism; German Democratic Republic (GDR); world championship; collective identity; Federal Republic of Germany; nationalism; historical development; soccer; national identity
Classification
Social History, Historical Social Research
Political Process, Elections, Political Sociology, Political Culture
Free Keywords
national team
Document language
English
Publication Year
2015
Page/Pages
p. 176-196
Journal
Historical Social Research, 40 (2015) 4
Issue topic
Football history: selected contributions to sport in society
ISSN
0172-6404
Status
Published Version; peer reviewed