Speakers
Description
The importance of football in the construction and reproduction of national identity has been analyzed by many scholars. This research aims to understand and explain the effect of football on the construction and reproduction of national identities beyond the borders of the national state. In this context, the Turkish Community Football Federation (TCFF), which was established in London in 1976 as an amateur football league, primarily by Turkish-Cypriot immigrants, has been analyzed as a case study. As part of the study, ethnographic field research was carried out among Turkish immigrants in London over a six-month period. In the data analysis, participants’ views were considered in relation to existing literature and three main themes were identified in relation to football: “Collective memory”, “National language”, “National representation and national symbols”. As a result, it has been determined that football has an impact on the construction and reproduction of the national identities of immigrant communities living beyond the borders of the national state. However, there are fundamental differences between generations in this regard. The first generation with migration experience is strongly attached to Turkish national identity and their country of origin (homeland). The ethnic-national identities of later generations, who have no migration experience and have spent their entire socialization process in England, are do not have such strong feelings. This study was supported financially by the Scientific and Technological Research Council of Turkey (TÜBİTAK; project number 2219).
