Televised Sports and Ritual: Fan Experiences

Abstract

Examination of idiosyncratic sports rituals engaged in by viewers of televised sports revealed complex patterns of negotiation and participation in the televised events. In addition to being well-recognized tools for defining group membership, personal rituals revealed the creation of multistranded connections between fans and teams or players, despite separation by an electronic wall. Personal rituals revealed a balancing of the need for suspense with a need for reassurance, and extended to superstitions and part-play/part-serious efforts to influence game outcome. Exploration of private sports-viewer rituals illuminates the ways individuals alter their experiences of televised sports in order to gain social and cultural empowerment.