Abstract
The celebration of scoring in football has long been tradition of elite sporting codes. Since the emergence of social media videos, footballers have celebrated on the field with a new-found level of fan entertainment. The mass media is central to driving footballers’ celebrations, known colloquially as “cellies”, which are shared virally on social media platforms. While English Premier League (EPL) footballers are the world’s leaders in spirited celebrations, other football codes are following suit with a planned array of magic moments on the field. This paper analyses case studies of elite footballers who are imitating standout moments in pop culture, including American social media influencer Sketch and Australia’s controversial Olympic breakdancer Raygun. The cultural phenomenon has profoundly impacted Australian footballers who are taking celebrations to unprecedented levels of entertainment and intensity. Leading Australian Football League (AFL) coach Sam Mitchell immersed himself in the intricacies of EPL football, and found that celebrating goals was a positive way of uniting his team and its fans. Mitchell’s Hawthorn footballers, known for their quirky and viral celebrations, recovered spectacularly on the field to become a competitive finalist in the 2024 AFL premiership season. Sketch, an NFL gamer famed for his viral gesture of raising his index finger and exclaiming, “What’s up Brother”, has been imitated on and off the sporting field worldwide. Sketch’s reach includes sports and football codes in the United States and Canada (NFL, MLB, NBA and NHL), Australia (AFL and the National Rugby League (NRL), and the United Kingdom (EPL).
Details
Presentation Type
Paper Presentation in a Themed Session
Theme
Sporting Cultures and Identities
KEYWORDS
Football, Fans, Social, Media, Viral, Pop, Culture, Journalism
