Entering into, staying, and being active in a group of football supporters: a procedural analysis of engagement. The case of supporters of a French football club

Ludovic Lestrelin (1)

1 CesamS - Centre d'étude sport et actions motrices

In football (or soccer) stadiums, one of the ends (virages in French, or curve in Italian) brings together the most organized and ardent fans who support their team manu et voce. This article aims to define the dynamics leading individuals to become a part of a group of supporters, an engagement conceived of according to a sequential process. Through a qualitative inquiry, results show the importance of the relational networks in the process of engagement in this type of organization. Moreover, friendly interaction and the levels of sociability encountered over the course of action as part of supporting make up as much incentive to activism as may be understood in the condition of being set back in the general framework of the supporters' careers. The article ends with a discussion on the use of the sociology of collective action and mobilization in order to study the world of football supporters.

Mots clés: Career; Collective Action; Engagement; Sociability; Social Networks; Sports; Sports fandom; Supporters

Domaines: Sociologie; Science politique

Ludovic Lestrelin. Entering into, staying, and being active in a group of football supporters: a procedural analysis of engagement. The case of supporters of a French football club. International Review of Sociology, 2012, 22 (3), pp.492-513. ⟨10.1080/03906701.2012.730831⟩. ⟨hal-02087115⟩