Contesting love through commodification: Soccer fans, affect, and social class in Turkey

Abstract

Soccer in Turkey has in recent decades become increasingly commodified. This process has been reinforced by a national law passed in 2011 that promises to prevent violence in the stands and civilize fandom. For upper-middle-class fans, the new cleaned-up version of soccer secures class distinction, but among less affluent and working-class fans, it has inspired resistance. Class conflict is here indexed through contestations over what it means to be a true fan and especially the quality of one's love for the team. Working-class fans often describe their love as maddening or self-sacrificing, while more affluent fans, sponsors, and administrators associate love with consumption. In the context of increasing political repression, fan resistance to commodification is discursively entangled with love and violence.