The Politics of Football

This book examines the deep connections between football and politics and explains what those relationships can tell us about sport and wider society. With the game occupying a preeminent place on the world sporting stage, this book argues that the political significance of football has never been greater. The book explores the politics of football governance and the international organisations that run the game, as well as the interaction of footballing authorities with government at all levels. It shows how football clubs and supporter groups have leaned left (such as FC Sankt Pauli) or right (such as SS Lazio) and have been significant voices in secessionist debates and the promotion of religious identities and ethno-centrism. It also addresses how fascist and communist regimes have used football to project political ideology. The book also considers key contemporary political issues in football, such as surveillance, discrimination, and human rights. This is fascinating reading for anybody with an interest in football, in the politics or sociology of sport, in international relations, government, or political ideology, or in the intersection of politics and culture.