Abstract

BUNDIO, Javier Sebastián. The construction of other in football: Identity and otherness in the songs of Argentinian supporters. Cuad. antropol. soc. [online]. 2018, n.47, pp.195-212. ISSN 1850-275X.

In this article I analyze representations about otherness present in Argentine football chants. Social representations about "us" and "others" are staged in these songs and are constructed through a dichotomous and exclusive logic of representation. Supporters do not recognize the discriminatory nature of the insults in the songs because the affronts in general are part of the performance and their interpretations are based on the dichotomous logic of "aliento", (support). Thus, for the supporters, these insults are not serious and are part of "football folklore". My research focuses on the study of the logic of the cultural phenomenon of "aliento" and its articulation with our society’s social, historical and cultural processes. I perform a discursive analysis of 500 songs, interviews and participant observation with fans of 26 Argentine clubs. I discuss first the main characteristics of supporters’ songs and the "aliento", and then analyze the constructions of otherness at the existential, cultural and social levels.

Keywords : Football; Identity; Otherness; Chants; Discrimination.

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