Sport for peace, State and society: Colombian and Mexican soccer fans

Abstract

In Mexico, some corporate sectors have co-opted soccer fans through cronyism, although they often resist and seek other forms of social expression. The relationship between fans, cronyism and violence should be studied from the perspective of the fans themselves. On the other hand, although the Colombian state has also co-opted civil society initiatives related to sport to control and shape the population (Ruiz Patiño, 2010), some soccer fans have learned to organize themselves to promote an identity as social and political subjects. Accordingly, in the context of sport for peace, this research compares the relations between the State and civil society in Mexico and Colombia through soccer fans and analyzes how soccer fans and state actors in both countries relate to the production, control, sublimation, negotiation, and transformation of violence. We conducted in-depth interviews with soccer fan groups and scholars who have studied these groups, and analyzed historical processes related to the State, violence, civil society, and sport in Mexico and Colombia. Our study shows that the historical patron-client relationships in Mexico, understood as a total social fact, have led some groups of soccer fans to integrate into these relationships, while others of these groups have chosen to distance themselves and resist any process associated with the State. Some of the actions of this second group are considered violent and trigger sanctions from the authorities. On the other hand, Colombia's 1991 Political Constitution encouraged the decentralization of territorial entities and "participatory budgets," which led to negotiations between members of fan groups and political actors that resulted in agreements to reduce violence and a fan culture that operated with State resources. In conclusion, our research suggests data and reflections that shed light on the relationship between sport and peace to understand that the ways in which soccer fan groups and state actors have related to violence in Mexico and Colombia vary according to the historical, political and cultural particularities of each country, such as the internal armed conflict, peace discourses, the role of the state in the territories, forms of community organization, and cronyism.

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