‘A Croatian champion with a Croatian name’: national identity and uses of history in Croatian football culture – the case of Dinamo Zagreb

Abstract

This article investigates the role of Croatia's leading football club, Dinamo Zagreb, in the negotiation of history as a crucial element of national and other identities in Croatia in the 1990s and early twenty-first century. During this turbulent period, Croatia abandoned communism, seceded from Yugoslavia, survived a war of independence, and rebuilt and redefined itself as an independent and democratic national republic. Historical interpretations needed to adapt to these changes, both on the levels of state and institutions and within popular culture. Emphasizing Dinamo's role as a national and political symbol, the article analyses how history and identities were being represented and used in Dinamo's club magazine and in tabloid comments. The article points out how football club discourse interacted with and challenged national narratives, and highlights the struggle between politics and football culture, particularly with regards to the creation of national histories and the establishing of national and other identities.