Does Qualifying Really Qualify? Comparing the Representations of the Euro 2008 and Euro 2012 in the Turkish Media

The portrait of Self and Other with respect to football has very recently been at the focus of studies on football. In their paper, Alpan and Şenyuva examine the Turkish national identity negotiations in two different periods through a qualitative analysis of the country’s media. Relations between Turkey and Europe through football can be seen as ideal objects of analysis towards understanding the European complex in the formation (and perpetual re-formation) of Turkish national identity. Departing from this close link between the formation of Turkish national identity and ‘encounter with Europe’ in terms of football, the paper aims to understand whether the existence or non-existence of the Turkish national football team on the field feeds into the identifications and narratives of the Turkish football spectators through the lens of the media.