#UnPaísEnUnaCancha? Football and Nation- Building in Colombia during the Presidency of Juan Manuel Santos (2010-2018) Peter J. Watson A thesis submitted to the University of Sheffield in partial fulfilment of the requirements for the Doctor of Philosophy Department of Hispanic Studies August 2019 Table of Contents Acknowledgements ......................................................................................................................... iv Glossary ............................................................................................................................................ v Table index .................................................................................................................................... viii Abstract ........................................................................................................................................... ix Introduction ...................................................................................................................................... 1 Methodology .................................................................................................................................. 13 Thesis Structure .......................................................................................................................... 14 Speech and Tweet Discourse Analysis Methods ........................................................................ 17 Interviews ................................................................................................................................... 18 Archive work ............................................................................................................................... 20 Observation ................................................................................................................................ 20 Literature Review: Colombia and Problems with Nation-Building ................................................. 23 The Weak State .......................................................................................................................... 28 Colombia vs Narcolombia: A History of Violence ....................................................................... 31 Football Nationalism .................................................................................................................. 35 Football as Ritual ........................................................................................................................ 39 Requirements for Football Nationalism ..................................................................................... 41 Political Use of Football in Latin America ................................................................................... 43 Women’s Football and Nation ................................................................................................... 45 Conclusion .................................................................................................................................. 46 Chapter 1: ‘El fútbol es el único elemento que nos une’: A History of Football Nationalism in Colombia ......................................................................................................................................... 49 Introduction: Football for ‘encuentros nacionales’ .................................................................... 49 Football’s Unifying Power in Colombia ...................................................................................... 51 The Requirements for Sporting Nationalism .............................................................................. 53 The Multiple Births of Colombian Football ................................................................................ 55 El Dorado: First International Football Recognition ................................................................... 56 The ‘Creolization’ of Colombian Football and the Search for Footballing Identity .................... 60 The Search for Success, 1954-1985 ............................................................................................ 65 A Golden Generation in the Darkest Years - 1985-1994: The Genesis of the Colombian Style . 68 Colombia vs Narcolombia ........................................................................................................... 75 Conclusion .................................................................................................................................. 81 i Chapter 2: ‘#VamosColombia’: Futbolización of Colombia and Nation-Building by Santos through Speeches and Tweets ..................................................................................................................... 85 Introduction: Santos and his Vision for Sport ............................................................................ 85 Previous work on Santos’ sporting discourse ............................................................................ 89 Public Discourse, ‘Narratives of the Nation’ and Football ......................................................... 91 Methodology .............................................................................................................................. 94 Overview of Santos’ Speech Strategy ........................................................................................ 98 Selling Colombia’s Image Abroad ............................................................................................ 101 Trends in Santos’ Speeches ...................................................................................................... 103 Legitimation ............................................................................................................................. 104 Justification of Sport and its Deployment ................................................................................ 107 Twitter Use and Strategy ......................................................................................................... 126 Results on Twitter Use ............................................................................................................. 128 Aestheticization of Tweets – Strengthening the Message ...................................................... 133 The FARC and Football Rhetoric .............................................................................................. 138 Most common Tweet Topics .................................................................................................... 140 Government Self-Legitimation in Tweets ................................................................................ 142 Talking and Tweeting about Women’s Football ...................................................................... 150 Conclusion: Talking a Good Game? ......................................................................................... 152 Chapter 3: ‘La ruta de acción’: Football-Specific Legislation and Public Policy ........................... 155 Introduction ............................................................................................................................. 155 A Greater Role for Coldeportes ............................................................................................... 158 Violence in Colombian Football and the Need for Legislation ................................................ 161 Negotiations between State and Barras .................................................................................. 163 Pre-Santos Legislation: Laws 1270 and 1356 and Decrees 1257 and 1717 ............................. 166 A Statement of Santos’ Intent: the Ley del Fútbol ................................................................... 169 Acknowledging Fans’ Rights: The Estatuto del Aficionado ...................................................... 172 Barras Construyendo País ........................................................................................................ 174 The Plan Decenal de Seguridad, Comodidad y Convivencia en el Fútbol – Consultation Phase ................................................................................................................................................. 176 The PDSCCF: Content ............................................................................................................... 181 Implementation of the PDSCCF ............................................................................................... 188 Conclusion ................................................................................................................................ 196 Chapter 4: Football for peace: football-based government SDP campaigns towards nation building ........................................................................................................................................ 199 ii Introduction .............................................................................................................................. 199 Recognition of Football’s Power for Social Development in Colombia .................................... 202 The UN and the Power of Sport ............................................................................................... 207 Academic Responses to SDP ..................................................................................................... 209 Origins of the Fútbol por la paz Methodology and Golombiao ...............................................