Football in France : a cultural history / Geoff Hare.

Format:

Book

Author/Creator:

Hare, Geoff, 1945-

Series:

Global sport cultures

Language:

English

Subjects (All):

Soccer--Social aspects--France--History.

Soccer.

Soccer--Social aspects.

History.

France.

Physical Description:

xiii, 226 pages ; 24 cm.

Place of Publication:

Oxford ; New York : Berg, 2003.

Summary:

France's performance in the 2002 World Cup brought back painful memories of a time when France was a weak contender in world and European football -- a time when national or club teams rarely won, and the French were renowned for having little interest in the game. Today, football plays a unique role in French society. French players and coaches are highly sought after abroad and the national team has chalked up significant recent victories, including a World Cup and European Championship. This book is the first in English to examine the extraordinary cultural, economic, and political history behind French football's development throughout the twentieth century and up to the present day. It focuses on the past twenty years and concludes with a discussion of the fallout from the 2002 World Cup. Hare traces the gradual evolution of traditional French football values and explores the impact of new and controversial business practices. Have French football's influential club chairmen sold out to business values and television? Why has the national team been so successful when club teams have not? How are top clubs being rebranded to catch a national and international audience of consumers? What role does the modern supporter play, and what are the links between businessmen, politics and the commercialization of the sport? What is peculiarly French about French football, and what does football tell us about France? Hare also pays specific attention to issues relating to race and racism. He looks at racist attitudes among fans, and considers how the multi-cultural and multi-racial population of France is reflected in the national football team. This book provides not only a fascinating cultural history of French football, but also an engrossing account of how national identity and community values are being transformed and reshaped in the global marketplace.

Contents:

1 Introduction: Studying French Football 1

2 Establishing Football in the French National Consciousness 15

3 Towns and Cities: a Socio-economic Geography of French Football Clubs 37

4 Fans: a Sociology of French Club Football 61

5 Coaches: Building the Successes of French Teams 91

6 Players as Heroes: 'les Bleus' and French National Identity 119

7 Television: Football as Spectacle and Commodity 141

8 Chairmen: Business, Politics and Corruption 155

9 Conclusions: French Exceptionalism vs. Commodification 177.

Notes:

Includes bibliographical references (pages 197-210) and index.

ISBN:

1859736572

1859736629

OCLC:

50876270