Pátria de chuteiras : o futebol como representação simbólica e cultural da sociedade brasileira.

Abstract

The present study aims to analyses how football transcended the sporting barrier and became a relevant factor in the construction of the Brazilian people’s cultural identity. In a nation as vast as Brazil, football, upon its arrival in the late of 19th century, quickly took root in popular culture, becoming a unifying element in a country marked by a social and cultural diversity. This paper investigates how football, present across various social and political spheres throughout history, became an expression. of the Brazilian people’s integration, as an iconic symbol of national identity. The methodological approach is based on a qualitative selection of facts and events that contributed to the construction of Brazil’s collective memory around football, utilizing a methodology that includes discourse analysis and media narratives, drawing from diverse sources such as specialized literary works, sports chronicles, historical and journalistic archives, audiovisual material, and digital journalism. The applied methodology follows a rigorous protocol of reading, selecting, and cataloging sources, ensuring that the historical and cultural approach to football is explored in an interdisciplinary manner. The study also draws upon the author’s empirical memory, expressed through a critical and contextualized vision of the role of football in the construction of the nation identity. The study concludes that football, beyond entertainment, serves a powerful metaphor for Brazil’s social, political, and cultural dynamics, demonstrating the role of sport in the formation of national identity.