Football, Nationalism and Globalization: A Comparison of

England & ItalyProfessor Roger Penn

Lancaster University

Conceptual Beginnings: Football Based on Nationality and Nationalism

• Nationalism, nations and nationality all have a long pedigree historically

• Nationalism received considerable impetus from the French Revolution, not just in Europe but also in Central and South America

• It grew throughout the C19th ~ the unification of Italy and Germany

• It accelerated after 1918 and again after 1945

Conceptual Beginnings: Football based on Nationality and Nationalism

• From its inception football has been powerfully affected by nationalism and national templates

• Football clubs competed in national leagues• Football club’s players, coaches, owners and spectators

generally came from the same nation• Football was regulated by national federations• Football became international within a decade of its

codification• This became institutionalized once national federations

formed international governing bodies and organized international competitions

• This was the template/axial principle for football historically

Globalization I

• Football spread from its origins as a codified sport in Britain to a wide range of global destinations within a matter of decades

• The game spread from Britain as a result of British commercial and economic imperialism

• Examples: railways [Peñarol, Rosario Central], textiles [AC Milan], expatriates [Genoa] and former school pupils [Newall’s Old Boys]

• This took place within a system of nation states

Globalization II

• This is a complex concept [or set of concepts]

• We can define globalization as a process whereby football takes on an increasingly global form– Clubs compete in supra-national leagues– Players, coaches, owners and spectators

cease to be nationally exclusive but come from a plethora of national [geographic] origins

Globalization III

• The growth of globalization is seen as an emergent/dominant feature of the modern world

• Football is seen as an exemplar of these changes

• The presentation explores these ideas in relation to football in England and Italy

• This is an extension of earlier work comparing other aspects of English & Italian football

• It compares the trajectories of the two countries using a mix of quantitative, historical and hermeneutic approaches

Nationality of Players in English Division 1 Squads, 1970-1

ENGLISH

SCOTTISH

WELSH

IRISH

OTHER

Nationality of English Premier League Squads [2010/11 Season]

ENGLISH

OTHER BRITISH ISLES

AFRICAN

SOUTH & CENTRAL AMERICAN

OTHER

Nationality of English Top Tier Squads 1970 & 2010

ENGLISH

OTHER BRITISH ISLES

AFRICAN

SOUTH & CENTRAL AMERICAN

OTHER

ENGLISH

SCOTTISH

WELSH

IRISH

OTHER

Arsenal

ENGLISH

OTHER BRITISH ISLES

AFRICAN

SOUTH & CENTRAL AMERICAN

OTHER

ENGLISH

SCOTTISH

WELSH

IRISH

OTHER

Manchester United

ENGLISH

OTHER BRITISH ISLES

AFRICAN

SOUTH & CENTRAL AMERICAN

OTHER

ENGLISH

SCOTTISH

WELSH

IRISH

OTHER

Tottenham Hotspur

ENGLISH

OTHER BRITISH ISLES

AFRICAN

SOUTH & CENTRAL AMERICAN

OTHER

ENGLISH

SCOTTISH

WELSH

IRISH

OTHER

Wolverhampton Wanderers

ENGLISH

OTHER BRITISH ISLES

AFRICAN

SOUTH & CENTRAL AMERICAN

OTHER

ENGLISH

SCOTTISH

WELSH

IRISH

OTHER

Nationality of Managers of English Division 1 Squads, 1970-1

English

Scottish

Irish

Nationality of Managers of Premier League Squads, 2010-11

ENGLISH

SCOTTISH

WELSH

IRISH

ITALIAN

FRENCH

ISRAELI

SPANISH

Nationality of Managers of Premier League Squads 1970 & 2010

ENGLISH

SCOTTISH

WELSH

IRISH

ITALIAN

FRENCH

ISRAELI

SPANISH

English

Scottish

Irish

Nationality of Owners of English First Division Clubs, 1970-1

English

Nationality of Premier League Owners [2010/11 Season]

UK

OFFSHORE UK

USA

RUSSIA

EGYPT

ADU DHABI

HONG KONG

LATVIA

Nationality of Premier League Owners [2010/11 Season]

Nationality of Serie A Players, 1930s [Champions Only]

ITALY

ARGENTINA

BRASIL

URUGUAY

FIUME/ISTRIA

Italian Diaspora

• 25 million emigrants from Italy since unification in 1870

• 9 million between 1900 and 1915

• 20 million Argentines of Italian descent [17.8 million in the USA]

• 25 million Brazilians of Italian descent

• 50% of Uruguayan population of Italian descent

Istria/Fiume

Istria/Fiume, 1910

Istria/Fiume, 2001

Symbiosis of South American Footballers & Italy

•1930 World Cup Final teams: • Argentina ~ 3 emigrated to play in Serie A [I played for

Italy in the 1934 Final]• Uruguay ~ 2 went to play in Italy

• 1934 Italian team who won the World Cup Final against Czechoslovakia had 3 former Argentine internationals in their team

• 1950 Uruguayan winners provided two subsequent Italian international players

• 1962 Italian World Cup squad contained 2 former Brazilian and 2 former Argentine international players ~ all were strikers!

• Foreigner players banned in Serie A from 1965-1980

Nationality of Serie A Players, 1950s [Champions Only]

ITALY

ARGENTINA

BRASIL

URUGUAY

SWEDEN

DENMARK

NORWAY

FRANCE

WALES

Nationality of Serie A Players, 1930s & 1950s [Champions Only]

ITALY

ARGENTINA

BRASIL

URUGUAY

FIUME/ISTRIA

ITALY

ARGENTINA

BRASIL

URUGUAY

SWEDEN

DENMARK

NORWAY

FRANCE

WALES

Nationality of Italian Serie A Players [1988/1989 Season]

ITALY

ARGENTINA

BRASIL

URUGUAY

SWEDEN

HOLLAND

GERMANY

REST OF WESTERN EUROPE

YUGOSLAVIA

EASTERN EUROPE

Nationality of Italian Serie A Players [2010/11 Season]

ITALIAN

SOUTH AND CENTRAL AMERICAN

AFRICAN

OTHER

Nationality of Italian Serie A Players 1988/9 & 2010/11

ITALIAN

SOUTH AND CENTRAL AMERICAN

AFRICAN

OTHER

ITALY

ARGENTINA

BRASIL

URUGUAY

SWEDEN

HOLLAND

GERMANY

REST OF WESTERN EUROPE

YUGOSLAVIA

EASTERN EUROPE

Milan: Nationality of Players 1989 & 2010

ITALIAN

SOUTH AND CENTRAL AMERICAN

AFRICAN

OTHER

ITALY

ARGENTINA

BRASIL

URUGUAY

SWEDEN

HOLLAND

GERMANY

REST OF WESTERN EUROPE

YUGOSLAVIA

EASTERN EUROPE

Napoli: Nationality of Players 1989 & 2010

ITALIAN

SOUTH AND CENTRAL AMERICAN

AFRICAN

OTHER

ITALY

ARGENTINA

BRASIL

URUGUAY

SWEDEN

HOLLAND

GERMANY

REST OF WESTERN EUROPE

YUGOSLAVIA

EASTERN EUROPE

Inter: Nationality of Players 1989 & 2010

ITALY

ARGENTINA

BRASIL

URUGUAY

SWEDEN

HOLLAND

GERMANY

REST OF WESTERN EUROPE

YUGOSLAVIA

EASTERN EUROPE

ITALIAN

SOUTH AND CENTRAL AMERICAN

AFRICAN

OTHER

Juventus: Nationality of Players 1989 & 2010

ITALIAN

SOUTH AND CENTRAL AMERICAN

AFRICAN

OTHER

ITALY

ARGENTINA

BRASIL

URUGUAY

SWEDEN

HOLLAND

GERMANY

REST OF WESTERN EUROPE

YUGOSLAVIA

EASTERN EUROPE

Lazio: Nationality of Players 1989 & 2010

ITALIAN

SOUTH AND CENTRAL AMERICAN

AFRICAN

OTHER

ITALY

ARGENTINA

BRASIL

URUGUAY

SWEDEN

HOLLAND

GERMANY

REST OF WESTERN EUROPE

YUGOSLAVIA

EASTERN EUROPE

Nationality of Coaches in Serie A, 1930s [Champions Only]

ITALY

HUNGARY

AUSTRIA

Nationality of Coaches in Serie A, 1950s [Champions Only]

ITALY

HUNGARY

SERBIA

Nationality of Coaches in Serie A, 1930s & 1950s [Champions Only]

ITALY

HUNGARY

AUSTRIA

ITALY

HUNGARY

SERBIA

Nationality of Coaches in Serie A, 1988/1989 Season

ITALIAN

BRAZILIAN

YUGOSLAVIAN

SWEDISH

Nationality of Italian Serie A Managers/Coaches [2010/11 Season]

ITALIAN

SPANISH

SERBIAN

Nationality of Italian Serie A Coaches 1989 & 2010

ITALIAN

SPANISH

SERBIAN

ITALIAN

BRAZILIAN

YUGOSLAVIAN

SWEDISH

Owners of Serie A Clubs: 1930-2010

Italian

Trajectories of Non-British Players, Managers & Owners in English Football’s Top Tier

Trajectories of Non- Italian Players, Managers & Owners in Serie A

England & Italy Compared

Conclusions

• The trajectories of nationalism and globalization are significantly different between England and Italy

• Italian football was much more global in scope than English football in the 1930s and 1950s: this was powerfully affected by the enormous Italian diaspora in South America [but not in North America]

• Italian clubs utilized foreign coaches in large numbers in the 1930s and 1950s: however, they have progressively disappeared since that time

• Italian clubs remain exclusively in Italian ownership [Italian capitalism is far more autarkic partly as result of the legacy of Mussolini’s corporatism]

Conclusions

• In England the trajectories of players, managers and owners all follow a very similar pattern

• English football was almost entirely British in scope until fairly recently

• Over the last 15 years or so foreign players and to a lesser extent managers have come to the Premier League in accelerating numbers

• In the last decade the ownership of English clubs has been massively transformed: now two-thirds are in overseas ownership

Conclusions

• National templates continue to be important, more so in Italy than currently in England

• Globalization has increased in English football but significantly less so in Italy

• Historic connections based upon mass emigration continue to be important in Italy: this evidenced by the continuing flow of South American players there

Data Sources

• Rothman’s [latterly] Sky XXX

• Annuario del Calcio Mondiale

• Calcio Italia

• T. Crouch The World Cup: The Complete History

• Wikipedia

References

• D. Gabacci Italy’s Many Diasporas

• R. Giulianotti & R. Robertson Globalization & Football

Appendix: Recent Publications on the Sociology of Football I

• ‘Il calcio in notturna e la città. Verso una economia della notte’ in E. Minardi (ed.) Economia e Sociologia della Notte Homeless Books: Faenza, 2000.

• *‘Football and Local Economic Development’ Soccer Review, Leicester, 2002, pp 58-62, 0-9544311-1-1. (also available at www.le.ac.uk/crss/.)

• *‘Management of a Football Club: A Case Study of Blackburn Rovers F.C.’ Soccer Review, Leicester 2002, pp 40-6, 0-9544311-1-1. (also available at www.le.ac.uk/crss/.)

• ‘Sport e Sviluppo Locale: l’Esperienza del calcio inglese’ in U. Lago, A. Baroncelli and S. Szymanski (eds), Il Business de Calcio: Successi Sportivi e Rovesci Finanziari, 2004, pp131-147. ISBN 88-238-3056-7.

• *'Football Spectators in English and Italian Stadia' Soccer Review, 4, 2005, pp31-33 ISBN 0-9544311-4-6. (also available http://www.supporters-direct.org/englandwales/library.htm)

• *'Cathedrals of Sport: Football Stadia in Contemporary England' Soccer Review, 4, 2005, pp27-30 ISBN 0-9544311-4-6. (also available http://www.supporters-direct.org/englandwales/library.htm)

Appendix: Recent Publications on the Sociology of Football II

• 'Sport e sviluppo economico locale : I'esperienza del calcio inglese' in Tempi e Spazi dello Sport: Italia – Inghilterra Modelli a Confronto (2006) Bortoletto, N. and Mazza, B, (eds) Il Piccolo Libro : Teramo, Italy.

• 'Gli spettatori negli stadi inglese ed italiani' in Tempi e Spazi dello Sport: Italia – Inghilterra Modelli a Confronto (2006) Bortoletto, N. and Mazza, B, (eds) Il Piccolo Libro : Teramo, Italy.

• 'Le Cattedrali dello Sport : gli staid di calico nell' Inghilterra contemporanea' in Tempi e Spazi dello Sport : Italia – Inghilterra medelli a confronto (2006) Bortoletto, N. and Mazza, B. (eds), Il Piccolo Libro : Teramo, Italy.

• *‘The English Football Stadium as a Site of Post-Modern Consumption: Text and Image’ Sociologia del Lavoro, No. 108, 2008, pp 141-147. ISSN 0392-5048.

• 'Sport and Health : The Return of the Local' in D. Jütting, B. Schulze, and U. Müller (eds) Local Sport in Europe (2007) Münster: Institut für Sportkultur and Weilerbildung. ISBN 978-3-00-021468-4, pp 221-228[Available at http://www.eass2007.eu]

• ‘Sport and Health: the Return of the Local’ in D. Jutting, B. Schulze and U. Müller (eds) Local Sport in Europe Berlin: Waxmann, (2009) pp283-289. ISBN 978-3-8309-2015-1.