Weaving the Threads of Memory: Trajectories and Experiences of Organized Female Supporters in Rio de Janeiro

Abstract

This article presents reflections based on an initial assessment of a set of interviews conducted between 2019 and 2022 with ten female supporters who are members of organized supporter groups in Rio de Janeiro. Through the interlocutors’ life trajectories and experiences, the study sought to understand the meanings attributed to initiation into the world of football and to engagement with supporter groups. The study is grounded in the assumption that passion is not a spontaneous or natural feeling, but rather an emic category that acquires meaning within networks woven by and for specific subjects, emerging from processes of social learning. From an analytical perspective, passion functions as a kind of raw material for understanding the other’s world, a form of knowledge made possible through discourses, practices, and concrete actions. The analytical process focused both on the singular aspects of each collaborator’s life and on recurring patterns. This strategy aimed to construct a sense of totality from this plurality, taking interpretive risks regarding this social experience. The narratives of women involved in organized supporter groups in Rio de Janeiro reveal the stories and challenges they face in asserting their presence and agency across different spheres and dynamics of these associations. Thus, the article seeks to contribute to reframing interpretations of the place, role, and effective participation of women in the history of football fandom, while also giving visibility to their struggles against gender hierarchies in football.