A new study led by the University of Connecticut reveals that the emotional highs associated with sports fandom are most pronounced during pre-game rituals. The research shows how these shared activities create deep bonds among fans, extending beyond the game into the realm of identity and community.
Fans around the world will tell you that the magic of sports goes beyond the action on the field. For many, the true enchantment lies in the rituals shared with fellow supporters. Recent research led by Dimitris Xygalatas, an anthropology professor at the University of Connecticut, confirms this notion, revealing that the most profound emotional experiences for sports fans occur during pre-game rituals rather than the game itself.
Xygalatas, a self-professed rational thinker and lifelong soccer enthusiast, reflected on his study’s findings with personal insight.
“Not what you might call a rational organism’s behavior,” he joked, recalling his tearful joy when his Greek home team clinched their league title in 2019.
Published in the Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences, the study tracked the physiological responses of fans during a soccer (or football) championship final in Minas Gerais, Brazil, between local rivals.
The key moment? The Rua de Fogo, or Street of Fire, where fans, through a dazzling display of flares, smoke bombs and chants, gather to greet their team’s bus.
Using heart rate monitors concealed under fans’ clothing, Xygalatas and his team discovered that emotional arousal peaked during these pre-game rituals, rather than during the match itself. The collective excitement, scientifically termed “collective effervescence,” surged to its highest point not during the game but when the fans united in their rituals surrounding it.
Only when the home team scored did the emotional intensity surpass that of the pre-game unity.
“What we see is that, in fact, the pre-game ritual generates more emotional synchrony than the game itself,” Xygalatas said in a news release. “There’s a single moment in the entire game when they have more collective emotional synchrony than the pre-game ritual, and that’s when they scored a goal.”
This research fits into Xygalatas’ broader exploration of how rituals shape human behavior and identity.
“Rituals are the kinds of things that, at first glance, don’t make any sense in terms of human behavior, but are deeply meaningful to people,” he added.
Xygalatas’ journey has taken him to remote corners of the world to study firewalking ceremonies and intense religious festivals. Soccer, however, offers a unique and fertile ground for study due to its universal appeal and rich ceremonial traditions, largely free from religious or political constraints.
His findings have far-reaching implications. The ritualistic elements that accompany sports — much like those seen at concerts, religious gatherings or political rallies — play a crucial role in shaping our emotions and, ultimately, our beliefs.
“By going to these events, we’re actually shaping our beliefs,” Xygalatas added. “So sports is not just an excuse for people to get together. It’s a driver of identity.”
Xygalatas shared a harrowing personal story to underline the deep-rooted significance of these rituals. Growing up in Thessaloniki, Greece, he experienced a violent attack for wearing his team’s scarf in a rival neighborhood, highlighting the extreme emotions tied to sports allegiance.
“The reason I was able to escape is that another group of men was turning the corner, wearing my insignia, so they chased them away,” he added.
Football, he emphasizes, is unique in its potential to incite deadly violence, a concern that organizations like FIFA should address. Clubs need to strike a balance between fostering loyalty and ensuring safety.
Yet, the takeaway from Xygalatas and his team’s research is a celebration of human connection through shared experiences.
“If we look at what makes us human, we realize that it’s our ability and our need to derive meaning from things that seem meaningless,” he concluded.
Co-authors on this paper include UConn graduate student Mohammadamin Saraei, professor Vitor Leandro da Silva Profeta from the Universidade Federal de Minas Gerais, and professor Gabriela Baranowski-Pinto from the Universidade do Estado de Minas Gerais.
This study encapsulates how structured rituals in sports are not merely a sideshow but the very heartbeat of how fans experience and engage with the game, fostering unity, shaping identities and creating unforgettable emotional highs.
Source: University of Connecticut