The changing faces of fandom? Exploring emerging ‘online’ and ‘offline’ fandom spaces in the English Premier League

Abstract

This article examines how spaces of fandom in the English Premier League (EPL) have developed over the last decade in light of globalization processes and technological advancements. This conceptual paper thus utilizes the existing literature and frames these insights to outline emerging ‘offline’ and ‘online’ spaces of fandom in the English football’s top-tier. It is argued that these under-explored spaces have been enacted by broader, powerful processes and the two spaces–the fan zone (‘offline’ space) and the independent Fan TV (‘online’) do now comprise two important spaces that add vibrancy, meaning and socio-cultural elements to the practice of ‘being’ a fan. Crucially, the article ties into and extend current debates around the technology-fandom pair. It sustains that, in order to understand contemporary fan culture in the EPL, these spaces must, increasingly, be considered as sites for collective and individual identification, the performance of fandom and social interaction.