Football clubs, city images and cultural differentiation: Identifying with rivalling Vitesse Arnhem and NEC Nijmegen

Abstract

How are deep relationships between city and club identification formed, and are they inevitable? The aim of this article is to provide a historical analysis of the rivalry between two football clubs, Vitesse Arnhem and NEC Nijmegen, explicating their various 'axes of enmity'. Supporters, club officials and observers of these two clubs created and selectively maintained similarities between respective city image and club image. The process of 'othering' influenced both city and club images and helped create oppositional identities. Herein, football identification reflects broader societal needs for a place-based identity, and for a coherent image of both self and other.