Clubs and events: Two models of performance in studies of sport and national solidarity

Abstract

This study distinguishes between two performances of solidarity—a performer–audience structure and a network structure—illustrated through a review of two case studies from the field of sport: a cross-national survey of football fans and a historical study of French cycling clubs. Research on nationhood, sport and performance has centred mainly on public events and how they generate focused attention to foster mass solidarity. Scholars have overlooked an alternative model of performance situated in horizontal networks and interpersonal interactions staged in front of a third party, such as found in clubs. Distinguishing between these performance models in sport and beyond can further our understanding of the relations between identity and solidarity in studies of nationhood. Whereas in the former model, expressions of solidarity mainly reaffirm pre-existing feelings of national identity; in the latter model, solidarity is performative: it does not simply represent social reality but serves to create it.