Basque Pelota and Europeanization: The Actions and Representations of Actors Involved in Two Cross-Border Projects in a Euroregion

Abstract

ABSTRACT This article investigates Europeanization from the perspective of actors involved in the organization of cross-border projects promoting an autochthonous sport. It studies two projects involving Basque pelota, a sport historically played on both sides of the France-Spain border. Both projects were launched by entrepreneurs, in the sociological sense, within the EGTC area of the Nouvelle-Aquitaine Euskadi Navarra Euroregion. The study identifies the characteristics of these local actors who have bet on their sport and on the cross-border concept. The intercultural experiences enabled by the projects and the increased frequency of consecutive sports exchanges have created a transactional space of Europeanization at the local scale desired by the EU but have not achieved the Europeanization expected from the Euroregion system. The transnational Basque dimension remains relevant, principally between France and Spain.