Competing for the Nation on the Football Pitch: Ideology and Sports in Mostar

Until the breakup of Yugoslavia in Mostar there was just one football team, Velež. With the rise of nationalism in the 1990s, Croatian nationalists created a new team, Zrinjski, as the sporting representation of the new nationalist trend. Competitions between the two Mostar teams therefore evolved into a political and ideological battle, as the management and supporters of both clubs perceived themselves as the bearers of opposing ideological views. Football is indeed a metaphor for the city’s enduring political divisions, which last until the present day. This paper analyses the socio-political dimension of football in Mostar against the background of political context. The main sources for our research are the statements of local politicians, the club’s management, fan songs, and club monographs.