Abstract
“Other” is a concept that is fundamental to sports: the other team, other player(s), other fans. Football fans share a camaraderie and can enthuse a tribalism (Mangan 1996) that is difficult to understand and replicate in the virtual world. Yet, that identity and fandom are expressed in virtual spaces. Who is a virtual footballer? What is fandom in virtual football? How is that fandom represented and expressed? How do real-world identities translate to the virtual? What does fandom mean in the virtual footballing context?
Football fans are commonly viewed as passionate, vociferous, and loyal (Bradley 2003). Though often portrayed negatively due to sporadic violent incidents they also represent a peaceful and positive way for fans to connect with ‘otherness’. Fans can entertain (for good and bad reasons), act as ambassadors for their respective club/country and through their behaviour break down stereotypes. We are interested in how that manifests itself in the virtual world.
This paper examines virtual football players to explore expressions of identity and loyalty (club or country) amongst those who regularly play major football video games: EA Sports FC, eFootball, and Football Manager. As current incarnations of longstanding popular franchises (FIFA, Pro Evolution Soccer/Winning Eleven, and Championship Manager, respectively) we consider how ‘otherness’ affects the player base through popular perceptions and misconceptions of real football, franchise rivalry and platform popularity (Guins et al. 2022). We also reflect on 'other' player agencies, audiences, and experiences between different types of football games. Lastly, we examine how these games act as a gauge in representing real football fans and how they are used to portray different notions of self, other layers of identity and what these might mean in understanding gamer identity. We then consider how these provide comment on some of the political, social, religious and national nuances involved in football more generally.
Football fans are commonly viewed as passionate, vociferous, and loyal (Bradley 2003). Though often portrayed negatively due to sporadic violent incidents they also represent a peaceful and positive way for fans to connect with ‘otherness’. Fans can entertain (for good and bad reasons), act as ambassadors for their respective club/country and through their behaviour break down stereotypes. We are interested in how that manifests itself in the virtual world.
This paper examines virtual football players to explore expressions of identity and loyalty (club or country) amongst those who regularly play major football video games: EA Sports FC, eFootball, and Football Manager. As current incarnations of longstanding popular franchises (FIFA, Pro Evolution Soccer/Winning Eleven, and Championship Manager, respectively) we consider how ‘otherness’ affects the player base through popular perceptions and misconceptions of real football, franchise rivalry and platform popularity (Guins et al. 2022). We also reflect on 'other' player agencies, audiences, and experiences between different types of football games. Lastly, we examine how these games act as a gauge in representing real football fans and how they are used to portray different notions of self, other layers of identity and what these might mean in understanding gamer identity. We then consider how these provide comment on some of the political, social, religious and national nuances involved in football more generally.
| Original language | English |
|---|---|
| Title of host publication | Proceedings of Video Game Cultures 2024 - The Other Conference |
| Publisher | Video Game Cultures |
| Number of pages | 11 |
| Publication status | Published - 13 Sept 2024 |
| Event | Video Game Cultures 2024 - Birmingham City University, Birmingham, United Kingdom Duration: 12 Sept 2024 → 14 Sept 2024 https://videogamecultures.org/ |
Conference
| Conference | Video Game Cultures 2024 |
|---|---|
| Abbreviated title | VGC24 |
| Country/Territory | United Kingdom |
| City | Birmingham |
| Period | 12/09/24 → 14/09/24 |
| Internet address |
Keywords
- Football
- Identity
- Fandom
- FIFA
- EA sports FC
- Football manager
- eFootball