Place, identity and football: Catalonia, Catalanisme and Football Club Barcelona, 1899-1975

A growing body of work considers sport and the social construction of identities. Drawing from that research, this article considers how football clubs are involved in the construction of national identities by making explicit the connections between sport, identity and place. The first part of the article examines the literature addressing sport and collective identification/representation and considers critical approaches that uncover the power relations that frame the sport/identity nexus. The second part of the article applies these ideas to a discussion of Football Club Barcelona's role in the social construction of Catalan nationalism and national identity from 1899 to 1975.