GBL 195 Fútbol: Passion, Politics, and Culture in Spain and the US - Preparation Course for GBL 295

This course helps prepare students academically, inter-culturally, linguistically and logistically for their short-term global experience. The seminar is offered on campus in the semester prior to the 4 sh global engagement experience. Completion of the pre-departure preparatory seminar is required for participation in GBL 295 - Fútbol: Passion, Politics, and Culture in Spain.

 

 

Credits

1

Course Types

Civilization

Offered

• Fall

1. Students will be able to challenge the misconceptions and stereotypes surrounding fútbol/soccer in the United States and Spain and that are commonly present in the popular cultures of both countries.
2. Students will be able to identify and understand the connection that exists between politics and fútbol/soccer teams in Spain, a link that is not usually present in the United States, but that has a great amount of influence in the formation of cultural identity in the Iberian Peninsula.
3. Students will have a deeper understanding of the role that their interest/fandom in fútbol/soccer plays in the making the sport a global cultural phenomenon with tangible, and sometimes unintended, social and political ramifications.
4. Students will understand that the culture of Spain is not monolithic by becoming familiar with basic phrases in three languages spoken in the country: Spanish (Castilian), Basque, and Catalan.
5. Students will reflect upon the fanaticism displayed by fútbol/soccer followers in Spain and compare it with the behavior of sports fans in the US.