Football city: Sport and culture in Liverpool (IEEL024)

Professional football has its roots in the working-class communities of Victorian Britain and it developed into a global industry in the late 20th century. This module will examine the social and historical background to the cultural phenomenon and discuss its effect on shaping the modern city of Liverpool, particularly through marketing and tourism.

We will also explore the multi-faceted area of the business of football, focusing on the marketing related principle of sponsorship and its exponential rise within football. Future trends associated to the football business and their potential impacts on the industry will be explored.

Module leader: Dr Lee R Kendall

Lee was born in Liverpool and completed his PhD in History of Art at Liverpool John Moores University. An independent art historian and author, he has been part of the front of house team at Tate Gallery, Liverpool since 2009 and has lectured for the University of Liverpool's Continuing Education Department since 2019.

Aims

To develop confidence in understanding and communicating complex ideas
To develop skills in research, collaborative learning and producing and delivering presentations
To introduce students to the history and development of Liverpool’s football clubs in the context of British social history and to examine the contribution of sports culture to the regeneration, rebranding and marketing of Liverpool as a tourist attraction in the 21st century
To introduce students to the business of football, global brands and the marketing related principle of sponsorship and its rise within football.

Content

The following topics will be considered on the module:

Context: social and historical background of football in Britain with a focus on Liverpool clubs and the local community
Studying the impact of marketing, the role of the media and how football has become more inclusive for women and other social groups
Critical analysis of popular art related to the football industry (public sculptures, memorials, banners, songs, videos, plays etc.)
Contribution of football to the rebranding of the city, World Heritage Site inscription and the impact the Capital of Culture award in 2008.

Structure

The module will be delivered over a three-week period in six two hour sessions (four hours per week, total 12 hours contact time).

The module will consist of classroom-based seminars with site visits to Everton Football Club’s ground at Goodison Park and Liverpool Football Club’s ground at Anfield. Students will be expected to participate fully and actively throughout the sessions.

In addition, it is expected that students will spend 34-38 study hours outside of the classroom contact hours on activities including assigned reading, optional reading of areas of personal interest, homework tasks, web research and preparation for assessment.

The course will be interactive in nature, with the sessions highly focused on understanding, interpretation and expression: encouraging students to put theory into practice throughout. The indicative schedule is as follows:

Session one: Introduction

Opening class-based presentation offers a potted history of sport in Liverpool, from John Hulley’s pioneering development of gymnasia in 1864 which sparked the modern global Olympic movement, to great sporting events and sports here such as the Grand National, the British Formula 1 Grand Prix (1955-62), Royal Liverpool Open Golf Championship (Hoylake), Liverpool International Tennis Championships, etc. Includes an introduction to the development of football in Liverpool, its working-class origins and the circumstances surrounding the creation of one of the most famous rivalries in British game between Everton F.C. and Liverpool F.C.

Session two: Site visit to the Football Quarter

In the Premier League era, football is big business and nowhere is this more apparent than in Liverpool’s new leisure hub, with its themed Bill Shankly/Dixie Dean hotels, football megastores and sports bars. The commercialization of football certainly has its detractors, but, as this city centre site tour will demonstrate, it is a vital component of Liverpool’s culture and economy, as is the significance of artworks such as the nearby ‘Hillsborough Monument Memorial’ (2013). The visit concludes at the Baltic Triangle in order to introduce the partisan nature of LFC/EFC street art.

Session three: Presentation – culture of football

Intended to open up debate about the legitimacy of football as a social mainstay, this class-based discussion takes a sideways look at various aspects of football culture including memorabilia collecting, fan clubs, charity/community work, club sponsorship, hooliganism and representation in the media. Far more than being simple purveyors of spectator sport, for decades football clubs like EFC and LFC have represented the best and (at times) the worst of their respective communities, replacing religion/faith in the lives of many; indeed the question may be asked: is football religious?

Session four: Site visit to Everton F.C.

This site visit to Goodison Park Stadium, home of Everton F.C. since 1892, examines the history of the Grand Old Lady via ‘The Everton Timeline’ (2010), a unique image/text based installation running around the entire perimeter of the stadium; as well as through numerous artworks placed around the area including a revered statue of top goal-scorer ‘Dixie Dean’ (2001). It will also include an exploration of EFC street art peppering the built-up residential area around the stadium as well as taking in a visit to Prince Rupert’s Tower, the 1787 lock-up that features prominently on the club badge.

Session five: Site visit to Liverpool F.C.

This site visit to Anfield Stadium, home of Liverpool F.C. since 1892, explores the history of the world famous ground, and bastion of the most successful club football team in England, through sculpture – ‘Statue of Bill Shankly’ (1997) etc, objects – the Great Eastern Flagpole (1889); and the emotionally charged ‘Eternal Flame’ of Hillsborough; as well examining the street art of the surrounding areas, which has latterly made certain parts of Anfield feel more like sectarian Belfast, opening up interesting questions as to the agitprop value of art and culture in a sporting context.

Session six: Conclusion and assessments

The course draws to a close with a brief consideration of the vital importance football and other competitive sport continues to play in the life and wellbeing of the city, its people and its visitors, before students are required make their formal presentations to the rest of the group.

Teaching methods

The teaching approach will include the following:

Taught sessions
Small group working
Group discussions
Presentations
Workshops
Site visits.

Assessment

Assessment will be by:

Group presentation
Multiple choice examination.

Standard University policies apply with regard to late submission of assessments.

Learning outcomes

On completion of this module, students will be able to:

Display confidence in understanding and communicating complex ideas in written and spoken language
Research a topic and work collaboratively in this research to produce a group presentation
Demonstrate a basic awareness of the contribution of sport to the well-being of a community and regeneration of a city
Students will be able to demonstrate an introductory understanding of the business of football, global brands and the marketing related principle of sponsorship and its rise within football.

Skills

Key skills that will be developed:

Collaboration and teamwork, through group discussions, activities, and tasks in class
Communication, developed orally in group discussions, activities and tasks in class, and in writing by production of assessed assignment.

Books, ebooks and websites

The University Library website provides access to many relevant books and electronic books, as well as academic journals and databases.