Female Spectatorship and Unsportsmanlike Conduct at Football Stadiums: Case Study from the Czech Republic

Vol.16,No.1(2022)

Abstract

Football is the most popular team sport in the world. It is entertainment, primarily for men, but nowadays, it can be said that the number of women at football stadiums is steadily increasing. Given the long history of spectator sports events consumption, it is not a surprising fact that there have also been serious manifestations of spectator aggression. The paper aims to analyze the relationship between women visitors’ verbal and other expression and their violent behavior on an example of SK Slavia Prague football club. Primary data were collected by a questionnaire survey mainly at the Eden stadium and other selected Czech football stadiums in 2015/16 and 2016/17 seasons. A total of 120 respondents (aged 25.01 ± 10.20 years old) participated in this research, and all of the respondents were attending the matches in a stand of home team supporters. We state that there are correlations between women visitors’ verbal and other expression and their violent behavior; e.g., the surveyed respondents had no experience with demolishing stadiums and other riots. The respondents also consider it to be the most serious activity at 82.58%. The racism display noted similar results. We state that the results are adequate for women visitors.


Keywords:
football; negative phenomena; women; questionnaire; violence

Pages:
90–100
References

Antonowicz, D., Kossakowski, R., & Jakubowska, H. (2020). A bittersweet welcome: attitudes of Polish ultra-fans toward female fans entering football stadiums. Sport in Society, 23, 1183-1199. https://doi.org/10.1080/17430437.2020.1737018

Ben-Porat, A. (2009). Not just for men: Israeli women who fancy football. Soccer & Society, 10(6), 883-896. https://doi.org/10.1080/14660970903240030

Berg, E. C., Migliaccio, T. A., & Anzini-Varesio, R. (2014). Female football players, the sport ethic and the masculinity-sport nexus. Sport in Society, Cultures, Commerce, Media, Politics, 17(2), 176-189. https://doi.org/10.1080/17430437.2013.828699

Doidge, M., & Lieser, M. (2018). The importance of research on the ultras: introduction. Sport in Society, 21(6), 833-840. https://doi.org/10.1080/17430437.2017.1300377

Frosdick, S., & Marsh, P. (2005). Football Hooliganism. Devon: Willan Publishing.

Harris, J. (2005). The image problem in women´s football. Journal of Sport & Social Issues, 29(2), 184-197. https://doi.org/10.1177/0193723504273120

Hebák, P., Hustopecký, J., Pecáková, I., Průša, M., Řezánková, H., Svobodová, A., & Vlach, P. (2007). Vícerozměrné statistické metody 3. [Multidimensional statistical methods 3]. Prague: Informatorium.

Heitmeyer, W., & Peter J. I. (1988). Jugendliche Fußballfans. Soziale und Politische Orientierungen. Gesellungsformen. Gewalt. Weinheim und München: Juventa Verlag.

Hodges, A. (2016). The hooligan as ‘internal’ other? Football fans, ultras culture and nesting intra-orientalisms. International Review for the Sociology of Sport, 51(4), 410-427. https://doi.org/10.1177/1012690214526401

Jakubowska, H., Antonowicz, D., & Kossakowski, R. (2020). Female Fans, Gender Relations and Football Fandom. Challenging the Brotherhood Culture. London: Routledge. https://doi.org/10.4324/9780429347009

Kossakowski, R., Szlendak, T., & Antonowicz, D. (2018). Polish ultras in the post-socialist transformation. Sport in Society, 21(6), 854-869. https://doi.org/10.1080/17430437.2017.1300387

Mareš, M., Smolík, J., & Suchánek, M. (2004). Fotbaloví chuligáni: evropská dimenze subkultury. [Football hooligans: the European dimension of the subculture]. Brno: Centrum strategických studií a Barrister & Principal.

McGee, F. (2017). Women at the match. The Football Supporters´ Federation. Kick It Out. Sunderland & London: Fans for Diversity.

Özaydın, S. (2021). The Impact of Slavia Praha's Takeover on Czech Football. Studia Sportiva, 15(1), 63-70. https://doi.org/10.5817/StS2021-1-6

Peréz, J. L. (2000). Curso de Estadística. Retrieved from: https://estadisticaorquestainstrumento.wordpress.com

Pope, S. (2012). The Love of My Life: The Meaning and Importance of Sport for Female Fans. Journal of Sport & Social Issues, 37(2), 176-195. https://doi.org/10.1177/0193723512455919

Pope, S. (2016). Female fan experiences and interpretations of the 1958 Munich air disaster, the 1966 World Cup finals and the rise of footballers as sexualized national celebrities. International Review for the Sociology of Sport, 51(7), 848-866. https://doi.org/10.1177/1012690214558284

Pope, S. (2017). The Feminization of Sports Fandom: A Sociological Study. New York, NY: Routledge. https://doi.org/10.4324/9781315689852

Scholz, P. (2016). Football Fan Behavior of the Oldest Club in the Czech Republic. Journal of Physical Education and Sport, 16(suppl.1), 694-698.

Scholz, P. (2018). Problematika fotbalového diváctví v České republice aneb „Quo vaditis fotbaloví příznivci?“. [The issue of football spectators in the Czech Republic or "Quo vaditis football fans?]. Brno: Paido.

Sekot. A. (2013). Sociologie sportu: Aktuální problémy. [Sociology of Sport: Current Issues]. Brno: Masaryk University.

Slepička, P. (1990). Sportovní diváctví. [Sports spectatorship]. Prague: Olympia.

Slepička, P., Slepičková, I., Kotlík, K., & Landa, P. (2010). Divácká reflexe sportu. [Spectator reflection of sport]. Charles University in Prague: Karolinum.

Sveinson, K., & Hoeber, L. (2015). Overlooking the obvious: an exploration of what it means to be a sport fan from a female perspective. Leisure Studies, 34(4), 405-419. https://doi.org/10.1080/02614367.2014.923496

Sveinson, K., & Hoeber, L. (2016). Female Sport Fans΄ Experiences of Marginalization and Empowerment. Journal of Sport Management, 30(1), 8-21. https://doi.org/10.1123/jsm.2014-0221

Toffoletti, K. (2017). Women Sport Fans: Identification, Participation, Representation. New York, NY: Routledge. https://doi.org/10.4324/9781315641690

Valenti, M., Scelles, N., & Morrow, S. (2020). The determinants of stadium attendance in elite women’s football: Evidence from the UEFA Women's Champions League. Sport Management Review, 23, 509-520. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.smr.2019.04.005

Yusoff, N. H. (2016): Types of Deviant Behavior among Football Fans in Malaysia. Mediterranean Journal of Social Sciences, 7, 1, 59-62. https://doi.org/10.5901/mjss.2016.v7n1s1p59

Yusoff, N. H. (2017). Motivation and Women Involvement as Football Supporter in Malaysia. Journal of Sports Science & Physical Education, 6(1), 36-44. https://doi.org/10.37134/jsspj.vol6.1.4.2017

Zámková, M., & Prokop, M. (2014). Comparison of consumer behavior of Slovaks and Czechs in the market of organic products by using correspondence analysis. Acta Universitatis Agriculturae et Silviculturae Mendelianae Brunensis, 62(4), 783-795. https://doi.org/10.11118/actaun201462040783

Metrics

0

Crossref logo

0


181

Views

188

PDF views