Abstract
In 1967, in Lisbon, Celtic Football Club, won the European Cup becoming the first club outside of Portugal, Spain and Italy to win it. The win was and is totemic for the Irish Catholic immigrant community in Scotland that has historically supported Celtic. We suggest the significance of the win reveals intersections of ethnicity, religion, nationalism, and the politics of ‘sectarianism’ in Scotland. During a period of discriminatory practices and attitudes towards Irish descended Catholics in Scotland, this iconic win for a Scottish based club born of Irish Catholics personified for this diaspora that (on one level) their day had arrived. This article explores the socio-cultural significance and legacy of ‘Lisbon 67ʹ for insider and outsider groups in Scotland. We reveal that soccer remains a central component of group memory connecting the past, present and future. We suggest Celtic’s win offered confidence and hope to a marginalized group within Scotland.
| Original language | English |
|---|---|
| Pages (from-to) | 1041-1055 |
| Number of pages | 15 |
| Journal | Soccer and Society |
| Volume | 20 |
| Issue number | 7-8 |
| Early online date | 20 Oct 2019 |
| DOIs | |
| Publication status | Published - 17 Nov 2019 |
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John Kelly
- Moray House School of Education and Sport - Lecturer - Sport Management
- Institute for Sport, Physical Education and Health Sciences
Person: Academic: Research Active
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