Female fans in blue and white (and yellow): interrelations between ethnonational and gender identity in the construction of female fandom

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Abstract
This article examines female basketball fandom in Israel, concentrating on the relationship between gender and ethnonational identity in sport. It is based on two preliminary assumptions: (a) sport is considered a masculine sphere of interest; (b) sport in general, and fandom in particular, are part of the unique sociocultural life; hence patterns of Israeli female fandom are influenced by collective-Israeli ethnonational and gender identity. The article follows the qualitative-narrative approach, using in-depth interviews. Its findings revealed symbiotic relationships between fans’ ethnic-national identity and their fandom for Maccabi Tel Aviv and views of the team’s players.

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