Plastic paddies vs master racers: "soccer" and Irish identity

Arrowsmith, Aidan (2004) Plastic paddies vs master racers: "soccer" and Irish identity. International journal of cultural studies, 7 (4). pp. 460-479. ISSN 1367-8779

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Abstract

This article focuses upon three key moments in the interlinked history of ‘soccer’ and Irish nationalism. In 2002 the Gaelic Athletic Association de-railed the Football Association of Ireland’s bid to stage the 2008 European Football Championships. The GAA’s intransigence contrasts with the apparently more inclusive Irish identity symbolized by the emergence during the 1980s and 1990s of the multi-cultural Republic of Ireland team and its diasporic supporters. The clash between Roy Keane and Mick McCarthy at the 2002 World Cup, however, indicates that these two discourses may not be entirely distinct, sharing as they do an uncomfortable reliance on the notion of authenticity.