Some Lines Bring Us Together: Sport as Crisis Renewal in Bosnia-Herzegovina

Abstract

Bosnia-Herzegovina continues to be a contentious country with an ethnically based power-sharing political structure. The advancement of the Bosnian Men's National Soccer Team to the 2014 World Cup Qualifier reshaped the rhetoric of an ethnically divided Bosnia, for at least a short time, to a message advocating hope, healing, and unity. In this analysis, we examine the national and international media coverage of the team to identify messages that are indicative of crisis renewal discourse—aligned with the optimistic and prospective focus on rebuilding through a shared vision. We suggest that renewal discourse, when filtered through the unifying discourse of sport, offers an appropriate and effective rhetorical strategy for advancing a cohesive national identity.

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