The Worldwide Diffusion of Football: Temporal and Spatial Perspectives
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1 The Worldwide Diffusion of Football: Temporal and Spatial Perspectives John S. Hill, John Vincent, & Matthew Curtner-Smith, University of Alabama Abstract The purpose of this study is to evaluate how football evolved from a village activity in rural England to become the world’s premier sport played in 208 countries. First, its diffusion in England is evaluated over time as well as how it spread spatially across the nation. Second, soccer’s diffusion worldwide is analyzed both temporally and geographically to assess the rate at which the sport spread and how its adoption moved from nation to nation across the major regions of the world. Principal findings were that 40 years was the time taken for soccer to take root nationally and regionally; and that spatially, east-west diffusion occurred first across regions before its spread northwards and southwards. The principal reasons for its adoption worldwide were the game’s simplicity, flexibility, and its appeal to common global values of teamwork, fair play, and equality. Globalization synergies are key factors accounting for the sport’s worldwide popularity. Introduction Globalization became dominant in the 20th century as world nations began to interact economically with greater frequency, exchanging commodities, goods, and technologies. But while commercial transactions were its driving force, there were also cultural exchanges as Western influences infiltrated to foreign countries to affect country cultures (Hill, 2009). One of these influences was sport, and of all Western cultural exports, sport has perhaps become the most significant for three reasons. First, in a world characterized by increasing industrialization and competition, sport has emerged as a key safety valve for relieving the social and economic stress induced by increasingly competitive societies (Madeiro, 2007). Second, in a 20th century characterized by two world wars and innumerable national conflicts, sport has become the institutionalized means of competing globally (Hough, 2008). Drawing on an Orwellian notion, industrial mogul Ted Turner once remarked: ‘Sport is war without the killing’ (Turner, n.d.). Third, sport has become a primary means of bringing the world’s countries together (Lopes, 2007; Wood, 2007). Sport’s effectiveness in these roles has raised it to preeminent popular status in many countries. For these reasons, the globalization of sports has attracted much attention (e.g., Maguire, 1999; Robertson, 1992). But as Poli (2010) noted, “Among all sports, football is the one that saw the largest diffusion during the 20th century” (p. 491). As such, its globalization process has attracted much attention (e.g., Giulianotti, 1999; Goldblatt, 2006) both as an inter-cultural influence process (e.g., Guttman, 1993) and as a form of European neocolonialism (e.g., Bale, 1994; Eichberg, 1984). But while the political, sociological, and cultural aspects of the globalization process are undoubtedly important, there are two aspects of the sports globalization process that received little attention. The first is its geographic diffusion. Bale (1978) called it “neglected” (p. 196). Global Sport Business Journal 2014 Volume 2 Issue 2 WORLD WIDE DIFFUSION OF FOOTBALL – Hill, Vincent, & Curtner-Smith 2 Geographic diffusion, as Hagerstrand (1967, 1973) noted, occurs across spatial and temporal dimensions. The spatial process demonstrates how innovations diffuse geographically within and between societies. All innovations start somewhere. If accepted, they spread, but how? Mapping geographic and spatial diffusion helps our understanding of how innovations spread and, as importantly, what factors appear to be important in their diffusion. The temporal dimension of diffusion attaches timelines to the spread of innovations (Bale, 2003). New sports, like any innovation, diffuse over time, but how long, and what look to be the key factors influencing their diffusion pattern? Once industries have internationalized and spread across countries, there are then opportunities for them to attain global synergies. These, as Aaker (1996) pointed out in the global branding field, occur as interactions among country markets build, maintain, and augment worldwide interest. These interactions, as Dicken (2007) and Hill (2009) noted are the essence of the globalization process. International sports also have opportunities to attain global synergies through their international activities. How this occurs is our second line of inquiry. Together, internationalization and globalization provide insights as to how and why some sports spread worldwide, and others do not, a topic identified by Elias (1986) as a question of interest in the literature. Our case study for this investigation is football, the world’s most popular sport (FIFA.com). Review of the Literature National diffusion of football: England The modern game of football originated in England, but its beginnings are global. In different forms, the game has been around for over 2000 years. Starting with Cuju in China during the Han Dynasty (206 BC-221 AD), it progressed through Japan (kemari), Greece (episkyros), and Rome (harpastrum) before becoming a regular feature of societal life in Britain in medieval times (Hill & Vincent, 2006). The modern game started a century and one-half ago as football made the metamorphosis from a medieval village pastime to organized club sport over the period from the1840s to the 1870s. As Goldblatt (2006) noted, this process was largely initiated by English public schools as they formed old-boys’ teams (e.g., the Old Etonians, the Old Harrovians, and the Corinthians) to play each other and tour abroad. In those times, football was played by ‘Christian gentlemen’ as only England’s upper classes had the leisure time to form clubs and participate (Miller, 2007). This changed in the 1870s as social reforms in Britain mandated Saturday half-day working, giving England’s working classes time to participate. These reforms coincided with developments in economic infrastructure as buses, trains, and even bicycles allowed sports participants to travel more easily (Goldblatt, 2006). Social and economic conditions played additional roles as football provided an athletic and social outlet for industrial workers to escape the uncertainty, drudgery, and misery of industrial life (Murray, 1996). Football amply fulfilled this function, and its growth over the quarter century to 1900 was extraordinary as it overtook cricket as the national sport (Goldblatt, 2006). Nationwide interest was enhanced in 1871 with the start of a national competition, the FA Cup. This injected excitement into the sport and over 1873-1882, the number of club teams rose from 15 to 73 (Lissi, 2007). Further interest was aroused from the 1880s as telegraphy allowed game results to be communicated country-wide, extending the sport’s appeal from local to regional Global Sport Business Journal 2014 Volume 2 Issue 2 WORLD WIDE DIFFUSION OF FOOTBALL – Hill, Vincent, & Curtner-Smith 3 and national levels. As information flows improved, a national sports press emerged to further popularize the sport. In the 1890s, individual player recognition began as cigarette cards with player images made their appearance. As media coverage gained momentum after 1900, commercial sponsorships and endorsements became popular. The sport’s allure was further enhanced in the early 20th century as professionalism took hold to allow Britain’s working classes to capitalize financially on their sporting prowess (Bale, 1978; Goldblatt, 2006; Murray, 1996). After the Great War of 1914-18, national interest was further stimulated as media participation picked up and radio began to carry games live in the 1920s. As a result, the game continued to prosper even as the Great Depression hit in the 1930s and as another World War devastated national and international economies between 1939 and 1945. In the post-war period, as Britain recovered its economic momentum in the 1950s and 1960s, consumer affluence levels rose and with them, television ownership. TV game broadcasts began, further elevating the sport’s profile (Goldblatt, 2006; Murray, 1996). During the 1990s, there was a further boom as global media evolved and high profile clubs embarked on brand embellishment campaigns with some (e.g., Manchester United) beginning their own TV stations (Hill & Vincent, 2006). The internet age added further media outlets for football and allowed increased fan involvement as clubs developed websites. Sophisticated in design, club websites in the English Premier League (EPL) offered club histories, news, ticket and merchandise purchasing opportunities, chat rooms, and statistics (Beech, Chadwick, & Tapp, 2000; Kriemadis, Kotsovas, & Kartakoulis, 2009). The addition of mobile phones further broadened customer reach, with the EPL negotiating national and international internet and mobile phone rights deals along with television rights for £2.1 billion over 2006-2007 (Olsen, Duray, & Slater, 2010). Overseas adoption of soccer: Anecdotal evidence Football was introduced to foreign markets through a variety of methods. Initially, sailors played pick-up games at ports (Goldblatt, 2006; Murray, 1996). From coastline ports, as Ravenel and Durand (2004) reported, professional teams were formed in France and Korea that spread inland as the sport’s popularity gained traction. This dovetails with global business perspectives that new ideas often originate in coastal areas as international trade initiates exposure to foreign ideas and