[...]... study of life under the regime through the prism of football Drawing conclusions about the game s impact upon Italian identity and the attempt to manufacture consent through the exploitation of mass culture, it reflects and further contributes to the existing historiographical debates by considering the following broad themes: identity, consensus, national and racial regeneration, plus culture and modernity... refer to the possibility of three coexisting yet differing types: Fascist, national and local As one of the key themes explored, calcio shows how the Italian Fascist identity, as constructed and disseminated by the regime, both reflected and contradicted the national and local identities that were also intensified by Fascism s takeover and politicization of the game Besides considering how these differing... study of politics and culture: the official culture of Italian Fascism is best defined by its diversities, contradictions and ambiguities For the greater part of the Fascist era, the regime sought the cooperation and consent of artists, and the association between art and the state was one of mutual recognition and legitimation The Mussolini dictatorship allowed artists to work and be supported without... necessary motions of indicating loyalty to the régime and then carrying on in their habitual mode of production they joined the syndicates, issued a few pro-Fascist statements, and took advantage of the subsidies and gratuities purveyed by the régime.21 Nonetheless, journalists were supervised and standardized by Mussolini s Press Office, under the tutelage of Lando Ferretti from 1926 to 1928, which... overcrowded and disease-ridden centres into the peripheries This regenerationist theme was further underlined by land reclamation projects, such as the construction of the new town of Sabaudia from marshland south of Rome and the Foro Mussolini project on the flood plain of the Tiber The latter also demonstrated how the regime manipulated its broad interpretation of culture and modernity to formulate something... changes and their Introduction • 3 effect upon the cities, club teams and stadia of Florence and Bologna, plus the national team In doing so, it draws conclusions as to the coexistence of apparently contradictory local, national and Fascist identities Furthermore, it also contributes to the debate regarding the regime’s attempt to manufacture consent through the political direction and exploitation of the. .. contribution to the local party’s reorganization and expansion of the city, it also conformed to the demands of the regime’s national regeneration programme in every respect Furthermore, the Littoriale became the spiritual home of Bologna Football Club Its achievements further highlighted the stresses between the various identities in Fascist Italy, as the provincial side that intensified the local sense... and together they excite that passion that holds no danger Sport cooperates in the most efficient mode to hold the country in blissful infancy.1 Yet, rather than make national pride reliant upon the endeavours of an individual athlete, as was often the case with Olympic events, the 4 • Football and Fascism successes of football teams at all levels reasserted the individual’s important role in the. .. Chapter 4 and further developed here, it was more than just a source of great international pride for the regime and the radical local party, as it also demonstrated the broad parameters of acceptability in Fascist architecture, thereby further indicating the scope for cultural diversity under the regime As shown in Chapter 7, both stadia also made significant contributions 10 • Football and Fascism to... international importance for Fascism by hosting matches during the 1934 World Cup tournament A perfect propaganda opportunity, it was the government’s chance to sell the merits of its methods of rule to the domestic and foreign markets Besides the stadia, the Italian national team provided the most convincing evidence of the regime’s successful national regeneration programme, which contributed to the . x0 y0 w0 h1" alt="" Football and Fascism 01 Football & Fascism 28/7/04 9:45 am Page i This page intentionally left blank Football and Fascism The National Game under Mussolini Simon Martin Oxford. technically outstanding footballers that raised the Italian national game to the highest international level. To achieve this, Italian football had to reach and surpass the standards already. demand and provision expanded rapidly due to the failure of the various liberal governments, the Catholic Church, and the Socialist/Labour movement to respect sport and physical recreation, and