ABSTRACT
In Portugal, football is a significant part of Portuguese culture and identity. Football influences Portuguese football fans' affiliations, decisions, and activities both in their public and private spaces. Traditionally in the Portuguese football landscape, football fans support one of the "Big Three" teams: Futebol Clube do Porto, Sport Benfica e Lisboa, and Sporting Clube de Portugal. Through author's experiences within the Portuguese community he have become very familiar with their culture, language, and love for football, specifically, how football is tied to an individual's identity to one of the "Big Three" teams. Proximity to the stadium plays a role in attending live matches as many fans in Portuguese football are considered nonlocal fans because they reside outside of geographic neighborhoods that the "Big Three" teams are a part of. In Canada, Portuguese football fans grapple with their sport fandom in relation to retention strategies and fan expression.
