‘It’s lovely to have that sense of belonging’: older men’s involvement in walking football

Abstract

ABSTRACT Men’s participation in group leisure is often promoted as a vehicle for social connection in later-life. However, current research rarely extends beyond underbaked statements about this, thereby neglecting how this is accomplished in the everyday leisure practices of older men. Informed by sociological scholarship which attends to the intersections of leisure, community, and belonging, I draw on 43 interviews with older men playing walking football to sketch out how men forge bonds and belonging on and off the pitch. Participation in a group activity allows older men to reassemble their selves alongside other men in ways that help avoid loneliness/isolation. Moreover, they cherish the ‘camaraderie’, ‘banter’, and friendships shared with other men. The cultivation of meaningful relationships also includes enacting modes of care and interdependence, in which dwelling alongside men provides security and reassurance under the shadow of their own embodied vulnerability. By taking claims of social connection seriously, I interpret men’s involvement in walking football not as an individual pursuit occurring alongside others, but as a collective act and social experience. I conclude by reflecting on the value of this approach for understanding men’s leisure practices, and possible future areas of social inquiry in leisure studies.