ABSTRACT
This book explores football culture, organisation and development in the five Nordic countries - Denmark, Finland, Iceland, Sweden and Norway. These countries represent an important case study in sport culture, policy and management, being shaped by unique traditions in their civil society and in social welfare and public policy.
The first part of the book explores the development path of football in each country, looking at how football arrived in Scandinavia and how it has been transformed from a voluntary civic activity into a professional sport while becoming closely attached to the global football system. The second part highlights key issues – including historical, contemporary and critical aspects – across three themes: professionalisation and changing practices; equality and gender; and supporters, audiences and culture. Written by a team of authors with a blend of experience as academics and practitioners in football, the book traces the contours of the distinctive Nordic model that occupies a prominent position in the global football system.
Shining fascinating new light on the relationship between football and wider society, this is invaluable reading for students and researchers interested in football, sport management, sport policy, or the history, culture or sociology of sport and for anyone involved in the game.
Introduction: Mapping Nordic Countries and Football, Part I: Changing Football in the Nordic Countries, 1. Tradition and Transformation in Denmark, 2. Growing Participation and Slow Professionalisation in Finland, 3. Preserving the Balance Between Amateurism and Professionalism in Iceland, 4. Inclusion, Exclusion and Modernisation in Norway, 5. Between Grassroots Democracy and Professional Commercialism in Sweden, Part II: Specific Issues and Themes, Professionalisation and Changing Practices, 6. Football Companies in Sweden and their Democratic Framework, 7. The Professionalisation of Finnish Football from the 1970s to 2000s: From Amateurs to Professionals, 8. The Professionalisation of Youth Football in Norway: Implications for the “Sport for All” Ideal?, 9. Football Fitness: More of the Same, or a Path-Breaking Concept?, Equality and Gender, 10. Five Decades of Women’s Football in Finland, 11. Breaking Barriers in Norwegian Women’s Football, 12. Women’s Football in Iceland: Don’t Wait for Change, Just Do It, Supporters, Audiences and Culture, 13. Historical Rivalries in Swedish Club Football, 14. The Development of Supporter Cultures in Norwegian Football Since 1990, 15. Nordic Spectator Studies: The Literature on Attendance and Satisfaction at Professional Football Matches, 16. Ethnicity and Aesthetics in Swedish Football: Playing Like a Swede, Fighting Like a Kurd, 17. Conclusion: Similarities, Differences and Future Research in Football in the Nordic Countries
