Whether they helped bring down Jose Mourinho, marched against their club’s owners or pushed back against plans to commercialise their sport, fans have a long history of using their passion as a tool for social change. Their protest stories are a reminder that fan activism is more than just a fad.
Black folks turned their fandom into a weapon during the Civil Rights Movement by boycotting professional sports franchises that segregated stadium seating and rallying behind players in support of civil rights causes. They also fought back against racist referees and wrote letters to editors of white newspapers in an effort to draw attention to the issue.
The protests against Liverpool’s previous American owners Hicks and Gillett grew out of a hardcore of astute supporters with a strong tradition of civic and political activism. The article explores how this activism was a tool for renegotiating the club’s governance and power imbalances.
In a world where media coverage of protests often depicts underrepresented groups negatively, this paper provides advice on how journalists can avoid such traps. By focusing on the voices of participants and aiming for a mix of sources, this paper illustrates how journalists can produce meaningful, ethical coverage that celebrates fan protest as a form of community self-determination. It demonstrates that a news story on a football-related protest can be as effective as a longer article about the same subject, and suggests the use of a series of “rules for reporting protests” including: