Women have claimed their space in stadiums since the game’s beginnings. But the fact is, it’s hardly women whose stories of “how did you come to soccer” get told, hardly them who get asked about their experiences when travelling away, in confrontations with the police, about participating in their own club and clashes with other clubs.
An extremely well done exhibit wants to set the record straight. The exhibit’s title is Fan Tastic Females and it “wants to tell the stories of fan.tastic women … to illustrate the diversity and realities of female fan culture in European football (and beyond) – from the perspective of the protagonists themselves.” And that is, of course, right up the alley of The Assistant Professor of Football.
Our visiting professor today is Antje Grabenhorst of Football Supporters Europe, and also of Werder Bremen’s Ultra fan Group Infamous Youth. She is one of the masterminds behind the exhibit. With her, we will go to those parts of the stands where supporters create their own choreography, their own drama, and meet the women behind the banners, flags and flares - from Istanbul and Tel Aviv to Rome and Marseille, to London and Portland.
Research assistance for this episode came from Eleonora Gollner, who provided an overview and a best-of of many interviews of the exhibit.
HELPFUL LINKS FOR THIS EPISODE
Fan-Tastic Females, online exhibit - code/ticket to visit for a voluntary donation
FSE - Football Supporters Europe
F-In, Frauen im Fussball (in German)
The Athletic, “Sexism, Abuse and Harassment: The Experience of Female Fans at Matches”
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Artwork for The Assistant Professor of Football is by Saige Lind
Instrumental music for this podcast, including the introduction track, is by the artist Ketsa and used under a Creative Commons license through Free Music Archive: https://freemusicarchive.org/music/Ketsa/