Ethnic sorting in football: A quantitative analysis of ethnicity and membership in Dutch amateur football

Abstract

This dissertation shows that ethnic background plays a decisive role in the likelihood that Dutch citizens will become and stay members of football clubs. Drawing on data of more than two million club members over ten years, it concludes that members of all backgrounds prefer clubs with a high degree of ethnic peers and few ethnic differences between members. This not only results in a substantial degree of ethnic segregation between clubs, but particularly affects the membership of ethnic minorities, whose small group sizes rather than ‘culture’ lead to high dropout rates. At the same time, overall minority participation in amateur football has continued to rise, with some minority groups showing higher membership rates than citizens with Dutch backgrounds. While this is surely a cause for optimism, policy makers and practitioners should also be wary of an increased fleetingness of membership ties. As the ethnic diversity of clubs continues to increase, so will the turnover of their members. This means that ethnically diverse clubs are more likely to struggle with securing a sufficiently stable membership base, which could put the continuity of these mutual aid organizations in jeopardy. It is therefore recommended that government and sports organizations lend additional support to clubs to curtail these challenges, so that they may continue to serve as one of the primary sports providers and meeting places for both current and future generations from all ethnic backgrounds.