Sports - Patriot Games

Sports had evolved into a form of "patriot games" by the beginning of the nineteenth century, in which particular views of national identity were constructed. Sports have been used to represent, maintain, and challenge identities by both established and outsider groups. Sports can either support or undermine hegemonic social relations in this way. Several compelling examples of how sports and national identity politics are intertwined can be found.

In a series of highly publicized baseball games in 1896, a team of Japanese schoolboys soundly defeated a team of Americans from the Yokohama Athletic Club. Their victories, which were viewed as a national triumph and a refutation of the American stereotype of the Japanese as myopic weaklings, were viewed as a national triumph and a refutation of the American stereotype of the Japanese as myopic weaklings.

Similarly, the 1932–33 cricket Test series between Australia and England's "bodyline" controversy exemplifies the convergence of sports and politics. The English bowlers' violent tactics were at issue, as they purposefully threw at the bodies of the Australian batsmen in order to injure or intimidate them. The bowlers' "unsporting" behavior sparked debate over fair play, sportsmanship, and national pride. It also put Australia's political relationship with the United Kingdom in jeopardy. The ensuing controversy was so intense that it drew the attention of both the Australian and British governments. One possible outcome was the development of a more independent attitude among Australians in their dealings with the British in the political, economic, and cultural spheres.

Also read: Paratriathlon | Parkour | Pato | Pentathlon | Pesapallo

The Soviet Union's military suppression of reformist efforts in Hungary (1956) and Czechoslovakia (1968) to create "socialism with a human face" was followed by famous symbolic reenactments of the conflicts in the form of an Olympic water polo match (USSR versus Hungary) and an ice hockey match (U.S.S.R. versus Czechoslovakia). Sports were imbued with enormous political significance in both cases, and the Soviet team's defeat was interpreted as a vindication of national identity.