Fans and States at Work: a Ghanaian fan trip to the FIFA World Cup 2010 in South Africa

The FIFA World Cup for men (hereafter referred to as the FIFA World Cup) is possibly the biggest global media event. Winning or losing often gives rise to expressions of collective degrees of national pride or disappointment. But, it is not only the performance of the teams that is of significance in this respect; the devotion of fans to the game and their loyalty to their own national team are also an important vehicle of identity and self-affirmation as a nation. Thus, no country can afford to dispense with the travelling model of the enthusiastic fan as a representative of national identity. Through an ethnographic study of Ghana’s state-financed fan trip to the FIFA World Cup 2010 in South Africa, we will show how the actors involved (government, opposition, fans and media) negotiate national identity and representation.

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