Abstract

TEIXEIRA, Rosana da Câmara. The Brazilian National Association of Groups of Soccer Fans in the public arena: the challenges of a collective movement. Antipod. Rev. Antropol. Arqueol. [online]. 2018, n.30, pp.111-128. ISSN 1900-5407.  https://doi.org/10.7440/antipoda30.2018.06.

The creation of the National Association of Organized Groups of Soccer Fans (Associação Nacional das Torcidas Organizadas, Anatorg) in 2014 was a landmark in the history of fans´ associations in Brazil. It was an unprecedented event which symbolized the efforts of the leaders of groups of soccer fans to put an end to the rivalries and hooliganism which had characterized them. It thus gave rise to a collective mobilization of fans who are committed to the defense of their rights. In this article, I aim to put this event into the context of the holding of mega-sports events (the World Cup of 2014 and the Olympics of 2016) marked by State initiatives to prevent violence and the growing criminalization of young fans. It likewise sets out to discuss the symbolic, discursive and institutional devices used by the National Association to negotiate with different social actors in the public arena in order to win a social recognition. Among the challenges which this entity has faced since it was founded three years ago, there are internal disputes and the rejection of the national coalition by members of the torcidas who have been involved in violent incidents and refuse to ally themselves with other groups of fans they regard as enemies. However, the leaders of this national collective movement are wagering on the symbolic capital it has built up in the course of its efforts to affirm themselves as the subjects of rights and stand up to the controversies of the current crisis in Brazil. The methodological foundations of this study include participant observation, an accompaniment of the fans and an ethnographic register of the actions the Anatorg has taken in the public arena.

Keywords : violence;; public policy.; Organized supporters in Brazil;; Anatorg; mega events..

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