Papers by Thomas Fletcher
#SeAcabó: how a mass-mediated “social drama” made visible and confronted (subjective and objective) violence in women’s football in Spain
The victory of the Spanish national women’s football team at the 2023 FIFA World Cup was marred b... more The victory of the Spanish national women’s football team at the 2023 FIFA World Cup was marred by the mass-mediated non-consensual kiss on midfielder, Jennifer Hermoso, by Luis Rubiales, then President of the Royal Spanish Football National Federation. The kiss sparked general outrage worldwide and led to the prosecution of Rubiales for sexual assault and coercion. Drawing on the concepts of “moral shock” and “social drama,” this article explores how this widely disseminated episode of “subjective violence” resulted in a shock capable of mobilising and politicising different agents. It does so through qualitative analysis of official statements and vernacular online discussions. The article makes the case that the unfolding of this social drama enabled more subtle (objective) violence, long endured by female athletes, to be brought into public discourse debate. In so doing, it boosted demands for social change. But such demands were also contested, in that the structured social drama resulted in an online “reactionary moral shock” characterised by anti-feminist and misogynistic discourses. Significantly, our analysis of these discourses reveals a shift in male victimisation narratives and strategies to disempower women and maintain sexual inequality. These include the denial of gender-based violence and the banalisation of sexual abuse.
‘[K]neeling only goes to highlight your ignorance. England is NOT! a #racist country’: aversive racism, colour-blindness, and racist temporalities in discussions of football online
Journal of Ethnic and Migration Studies, 2024
Drawing on theories of aversive racism and colour-blindness, which stress the invisibility of con... more Drawing on theories of aversive racism and colour-blindness, which stress the invisibility of contemporary racism, this article analyses online discussions on taking the knee (TTK) during EURO2020 men’s football tournament. While highly visible racist abuse directed at Black English players after losing the final to Italy (dominative racism) received most public attention and repudiation, based on 6,850 English language tweets published on Twitter/X, this article shows how subtle racism and colour-blindness were reinforced in discussions around TTK over the duration of the tournament (aversive racism). The article also shows how individuals online developed a variety of strategies (evidence, othering, critique, and activism) to challenge the main arguments against anti-racist activism in football (identified in four themes: BLM, Marxism, virtue signalling, and woke). The article makes an original contribution by examining the changing intensity of online conversations on TTK over the duration of the tournament. Our analysis identifies key moments in the tournament, political elites’ rhetoric, and trends of success and failure as relevant factors that shaped vernacular conversations online. The discussion ultimately argues that investigating the temporal patterns of public discussions on (anti)racism provides valuable insights to understand the contemporary complexity of racism in football and society more broadly.
‘Best run club in the world': Manchester City fans and the legitimation of sportswashing?
International Review for the Sociology of Sport
The term sportswashing has been discussed and analysed within academic circles, as well as the ma... more The term sportswashing has been discussed and analysed within academic circles, as well as the mainstream media. However, the majority of existing research has focused on one-off event-based sportswashing strategies (such as autocratic states hosting major international sports events) rather than longer term investment-based strategies (such as state actors purchasing sports clubs and teams). Furthermore, little has been written about the impact of this latter strategy on the existing fanbase of the purchased team and on their relationship with sportswashing and the discourses surrounding it. This paper addresses this lacuna through analysis of a popular Manchester City online fan forum, which illustrates the manner in which this community of dedicated City fans have legitimated the actions of the club's ownership regime, the Abu Dhabi United Group – a private equity group operated by Abu Dhabi royalty and UAE politicians. The discursive strategies of the City fans are discussed...
Sport mega-events and Islam
Sports Events, Society and Culture, 2014
| Sports Events, Society and Culture | Taylor & Francis Group
Yorkshire, Cricket and Identity: An Ethnographic Analysis of Yorkshire Cricket’s Imagined Community
This chapter focuses on league cricket in Yorkshire and the varying interplays of local and socia... more This chapter focuses on league cricket in Yorkshire and the varying interplays of local and social identity therein. The purpose of this chapter is to establish the extent to which existing stereotypes of Yorkshire persons are ‘real’ or ‘imagined’; discover if the stereotypes presented have any contemporary relevance; whilst locating the role of Yorkshire’s cricket leagues and Yorkshire County Cricket Club’s (YCCC) legendary birthright policy in the historical exclusion of Yorkshire’s South Asian communities.
They'll never play rugby league in Kazakhstan": expansion, community and identity in a globalised and globalising sport
Sport and English National Identity in a ‘Disunited Kingdom’, 2017
threat to a dominant White 'British' or 'English' culture.2 While studies on minoritised ethnic c... more threat to a dominant White 'British' or 'English' culture.2 While studies on minoritised ethnic communities' sense of national belonging and identity have increased substantially in the last two decades, we still know very little about these within the context of sport. The legacy of the role of sport in the colonial project of the British Empire, combined with more recent connections between sport and far right fascist/nationalist politics has made the association between 'Britishness', 'Englishness' and ethnic identity(ies) a particularly intriguing one. At the same time, questions of identity, nationalism, 'race' and migration, as well as concerns over social cohesion and inclusion, have been central to British government sport policies for over 40 years. More recent discussions have concerned whether or not the UK is and should be a multicultural society, the extent to which understandings of 'race' and racial difference structure this debate and the place of sport within this (see Carrington, Fletcher and McDonald, 2016). It is perhaps surprising, then, that the body of research that explores the nexus of 'Englishness', ethnicity and sport is quite under developed. With a few notable exceptions, the scrutiny of these connections is in its infancy. Given this, the chapter that follows proposes a conceptual framework that considers a range of possible avenues from which to explore this nexus. After some introductory comments about the regular fusion of 'Britishness' and 'Englishness', particularly in studies of sport, we outline four concepts that can offer a theoretical springboard to consider the connections between 'Englishness' and ethnicity, particularly in relation to the experiences of minoritised ethnic communities. We conclude by arguing that the underlying and perhaps central issue relates to the
Leisure Studies, 2021
The Leeds Beckett repository holds a wide range of publications, each of which has been checked f... more The Leeds Beckett repository holds a wide range of publications, each of which has been checked for copyright and the relevant embargo period has been applied by the Research Services team. We operate on a standard take-down policy. If you are the author or publisher of an output and you would like it removed from the repository, please contact us and we will investigate on a case-by-case basis.
Sport, Leisure and Social Justice, 2017
International Review for the Sociology of Sport, 2017
Sports are popularly believed to have positive integrative functions and are thought, therefore, ... more Sports are popularly believed to have positive integrative functions and are thought, therefore, to be able to galvanise different, and sometimes divided communities through a shared sporting interest. UK government and policy rhetoric over the last two decades has consistently emphasised the positive role sport can play in building more cohesive, empowered and active communities. These positive impacts are particularly important for communities with high numbers of young people from disadvantaged backgrounds. The purpose of this article is to reflect on the challenges associated with co-producing a participatory community sport initiative with 28 young people, the aim of which was to work towards greater social cohesion in an ethnically segregated borough in north-west England. Although a great deal was learned from working towards this, the initiative was ultimately unsuccessful because, for a variety of reasons, the young people removed themselves from the process. A major contri...
Social & Cultural Geography, 2016
In this paper we present findings from interviews conducted with people who walk with dogs. Drawi... more In this paper we present findings from interviews conducted with people who walk with dogs. Drawing on new walking studies and animal geographies as our theoretical framework, we adopt the view that walking is more than just walking; it is often a highly sensual and complex activity. We argue that walking with dogs represents a potentially important cultural space for making sense of human-animal relations. We show how the personalities of both dog and walker can shape not only walking practices, but also the human-animal bond. We contend that the walk is a significant arena where relations of power between animal and human are consciously mediated. We also provide evidence which indicates the contested nature of walking practices and spaces. We conclude that the dog walk is a useful practice through which to examine human-animal relations and thus to contribute to the field of animal geographies.
Soccer & Society, 2014
Anthony Clavane, Does you rabbi know you're here? The story of English football's forgotten tribe... more Anthony Clavane, Does you rabbi know you're here? The story of English football's forgotten tribe, London: Quercus, 2010; 269 pp. (with index), £7.99 (paperback), £17.99 (hardback), ISBN: 978-0857388148 (paperback), ISBN: 978-0-85738-812-4 (hardback).
Sport in History, 2013
The Leeds Beckett repository holds a wide range of publications, each of which has been checked f... more The Leeds Beckett repository holds a wide range of publications, each of which has been checked for copyright and the relevant embargo period has been applied by the Research Services team. We operate on a standard take-down policy. If you are the author or publisher of an output and you would like it removed from the repository, please contact us and we will investigate on a case-by-case basis.
Leisure/Loisir, 2013
The Leeds Beckett repository holds a wide range of publications, each of which has been checked f... more The Leeds Beckett repository holds a wide range of publications, each of which has been checked for copyright and the relevant embargo period has been applied by the Research Services team. We operate on a standard take-down policy. If you are the author or publisher of an output and you would like it removed from the repository, please contact us and we will investigate on a case-by-case basis.
International Review for the Sociology of Sport, 2011
This article explores the relationship between British Asians’ sense of nationhood, citizenship, ... more This article explores the relationship between British Asians’ sense of nationhood, citizenship, ethnicity and some of their manifestations in relation to sports fandom: specifically in terms of how cricket is used as a means of articulating diasporic British Asian identities. Norman Tebbit’s ‘cricket test’ is at the forefront of this article to tease out the complexities of being British Asian in terms of supporting the English national cricket team. The first part of the article locates Tebbit’s ‘cricket test’ within the wider discourse of multiculturalism. The analysis then moves to focus on the discourse of sports fandom and the concept of ‘home team advantage’ arguing that sports venues represent significant sites for nationalist and cultural expression due to their connection with national history. The article highlights how supporting ‘Anyone but England’, thereby rejecting ethnically exclusive notions of ‘Englishness’ and ‘Britishness’, continues to be a definer of British A...
Identities, 2014
Ever since different communities began processes of global migration, sport has been an integral ... more Ever since different communities began processes of global migration, sport has been an integral feature in how we conceptualise and experience the notion of being part of a diaspora (Burdsey et al. 2013). Sport provides diasporic communities with a powerful means for creating transnational ties, but also shapes ideas of their ethnic and racial identities. In spite of this, theories of diaspora have been applied sparingly to sporting discourses. Due mainly to its central role in spreading dominant white racial narratives within the British Empire, and the various ways different ethnic groups have 'played' with the meanings and associations of the sport in the (post-)colonial period, cricket is an interesting focus for academic research. Despite W.G. Grace's claim that cricket advances civilisation by promoting a common bond, binding together peoples of vastly different backgrounds, to this day cricket operates strict symbolic boundaries; defining those who do, and equally, do not belong. C.L.R. James' now famous metaphor of looking 'beyond the boundary' captures the belief that, to fully understand the significance of cricket, and the sport's roles in changing and shaping society, one must consider the wider social and political contexts within which the game is played. The collection of papers in this special issue does just that. Cricket acts as the point of departure in each, but the way in which ideas of power, representation and inequality are 'played out' is unique in each.
A ‘cannibalised’ cricket event? Mediatisation, innovation and The Hundred
Leisure Studies
Attending and consuming events are integral to many peoples’ leisure lives. However, as the liter... more Attending and consuming events are integral to many peoples’ leisure lives. However, as the literature attests, events represent significant sites of contestation over who does and does not belong. This paper explores such contestation in the notoriously elitist and traditionally exclusionary sport of cricket, and specifically The Hundred; the most recent attempt to democratise the sport by appealing to a more demographically diverse spectator base. It uniquely blends extensive semi-structured interviews with stakeholders (n = 33), and a synthesised theoretical framework of mediatisation, media events and digital leisure studies, to argue that the apparent success of The Hundred in attracting and including new audiences has been enabled by incorporating elements of media spectacle. We therefore, use The Hundred to further delineate the processes described in the extant literature, and extend analysis of the ‘digital turn’, by drawing attention to the tensions between the speed and trajectory of these developments and the constraints imposed by cricket’s history. We illustrate how digital and analogue leisure remain highly interdependent, and argue that the ongoing contestation of game forms championed by different cricket stakeholders makes it improbable that The Hundred can achieve its twin goals of being economically viable, while increasing the popularity and, ultimately survival, of other cricket formats.
A ‘cannibalised’ cricket event? Mediatisation, innovation and The Hundred
Leisure Studies, 2023
Attending and consuming events are integral to many peoples’ leisure lives. However, as the liter... more Attending and consuming events are integral to many peoples’ leisure lives. However, as the literature attests, events represent significant sites of contestation over who does and does not belong. This paper explores such contestation in the notoriously elitist and traditionally exclusionary sport of cricket, and specifically The Hundred; the most recent attempt to democratise the sport by appealing to a more demographically diverse spectator base. It uniquely blends extensive semi-structured interviews with stakeholders (n = 33), and a synthesised theoretical framework of mediatisation, media events and digital leisure studies, to argue that the apparent success of The Hundred in attracting and including new audiences has been enabled by incorporating elements of media spectacle. We therefore, use The Hundred to further delineate the processes described in the extant literature, and extend analysis of the ‘digital turn’, by drawing attention to the tensions between the speed and trajectory of these developments and the constraints imposed by cricket’s history. We illustrate how digital and analogue leisure remain highly interdependent, and argue that the ongoing contestation of game forms championed by different cricket stakeholders makes it improbable that The Hundred can achieve its twin goals of being economically viable, while increasing the popularity and, ultimately survival, of other cricket formats.
This report is submitted to the Higher Education Academy (HEA) on behalf of the Leisure Studies A... more This report is submitted to the Higher Education Academy (HEA) on behalf of the Leisure Studies Association (LSA). The LSA aims to foster research in Leisure Studies; to promote interest in Leisure Studies and advance education in this field; to encourage debate through publications, and an international journal Leisure Studies; to stimulate the exchange of ideas on contemporary leisure issues; to disseminate knowledge of Leisure Studies to create the conditions for better-informed decisions by policy makers. The LSA is a member society of the Academy of Social Sciences.