Current Affairs of the Changing Trend in Athletic Identity for Youth Football Players

Abstract

PURPOSE The purpose of this study was to understand the athletic identity of youth football players and to trace its changing trend.METHODS Participants of this study included 93 players in 2005 and 94 players in 2021, who were in middle and high schools. All participants answered open-ended questionnaires. After the results of the inductive content analysis, the changing trend of the results was assessed.RESULTS The athletic identity of youth football players were collected from 811 raw data samples collected in 2005 and 741 collected in 2021 and categorized into 19 sub-categories and 5 categories. The results show a tendency to be specific to football. The athletic identity of a football player itself is weakening, being replaced by the identity of being a student. The role of the camp is also weakening, while more privacy and autonomy are allowed to the players. As a result, efforts to secure the players’ right to study were accepted by the players, and expected to decrease as camp life with limited privacy is on the decline, and as senses toward one’s physical competence are changing.CONCLUSIONS Sociocultural contexts, including changes in the system and social modifications, are reflected in the football player's athletic identity and its changes. The athletic identity of youth football players has changed from its 2005 version of unacademic camp life with limited privacy to the 2021 version, where the player leaves camp to be provided with privacy and attend classes.