The Great Transformation of the English Game: Karl Polanyi and the Double Movement ‘Against Modern Football’

Abstract

In this chapter, David Webber develops the work of Karl Polanyi to offer a unique and important analysis of the ‘great transformation’ of English football. Taking Polanyi’s conceptualisation of the ‘double movement’, the chapter proceeds to show how a neoliberal ‘market mentality’ embedded within the British economy, which was subsequently socialised by the English game’s governing bodies and its leading clubs in the wake of the Hillsborough disaster. As this chrematistic mentality has taken hold, fans have – as Polanyi predicted – reacted against this marketisation, seeking ways of protecting the social and cultural value of the game. In the final part, Webber explores the prospects of this movement ‘against modern football’, suggesting ways in which Polanyi’s work might provide the intellectual rationale for a more socially embedded sport.