ABSTRACT
In 2006, the FIFA World Cup generated uncharacteristically and surprisingly strong, positive national sentiments in the host nation. The German experience of the 2006 World Cup presents an opportunity to examine a specific and historically recent occasion in which televised events played a crucial role in changing an existing collective emotion orientation to national pride. The 2006 World Cup conformed to the rare form of large-scale media event that sociologists Dayan and Katz would term a combination of 'contest' and 'conquest' events with considerable potential for national emotion and integration. The status of national pride in the prevailing collective emotion orientation continued to link national pride with nationalism, right-wing extremism and concerns about how this would be viewed internationally. Further feature of Germany's cultural, social and political background prior to 2006 should also be taken into account, specifically, attempts to construct national pride.
