Football supporters and their messages - a segment from the visual expression of the fan subculture

Abstract

The paper presents the results of research on fan messages conducted by analysing the elements of visual expression of the supporters’ group “Bad Blue Boys” of the “Citizens Football Club Dinamo Zagreb”. The period of analysis included ten seasons of domestic football championships and international leagues (2010-2020). The results revealed that during this period the supporters’ group “Bad Blue Boys” went through several stages, marked by protests and activism, the battle for democratization and a greater degree of transparency in the “Dinamo Zagreb” football club that they support, but also some less pleasant stages, including a period of strong repression of the group, as well as internal divisions. Discourse analysis method was used to create a typology of fans’ messages, while the description of their rituals arose from many years of participant observation of their rituals.