FACULTY OF CULTURE AND SOCIETY | Seminar
Leif Stenberg: Outlining Spaces of Muslimness, Politics, Nationalism and Identity

Leif Stenberg (Aga Khan University, London): “Saudi Arabia, Syria and Pakistan: Outlining Spaces of Muslimness, Politics, Nationalism and Identity”

Speaker

Leif Stenberg is a professor in Islamic studies, Aga Khan University Institute for the Study of Muslim Civilisations (AKU-ISMC), London, UK. Leif is also a guest professor in Islamic studies at the Centre for Theology and Religious Studies, Lund University.

Abstract

Saudi Arabia, Syria and Pakistan: Outlining Spaces of Football, Muslimness, Politics and Identity
This talk discusses the current state of football in Pakistan, Saudi Arabia and Syria. It is suggested that football, both male and female, is part of the considerable changes in these three countries regarding politics, nationalism, religiosity and identity. Football has become a popular and profitable global sport in Saudi Arabia, where women were recently allowed to play in 2017. In Pakistan, a country with a huge population, football remains a territory yet to be conquered. In Syria, football is intertwined with the civil war through politics and nationalism. Surprisingly, the male national team has performed well during the war.

Today, football is a socially charged arena in which meaning is produced, values are contested and communities envision their future. The intersection of football and religion, particularly Islam and Christianity, shapes religiosity, nationalism, and the changing cultures of contemporary societies. The talk explores how and why football is intertwined with religion and nationalism, and how the game shapes values, emotions, politics and social norms. A key question in the three countries is how female footballers are defined within spaces of Muslimness. The concept of 'Muslimness' is a floating term connected to football spaces created through versions of Islam and Muslim identities.

Ultimately, the aim is to demonstrate how football can be used to examine societal developments in Pakistan, Saudi Arabia and Syria.

Welcome!