Temples of the Earthbound Gods : Stadiums in the Cultural Landscapes of Rio De Janeiro and Buenos Aires

In Rio de Janeiro, the spiritual home of world football, and Buenos Aires, where a popular soccer club president was recently elected mayor, the game is an integral part of national identity. Using the football stadium as an illuminating cultural lens, "Temples of the Earthbound Gods" examines many aspects of urban culture that play out within these monumental architectural forms, including spirituality, violence, rigid social norms, anarchy, and also expressions of sexuality and gender. Tracing the history of the game in Brazil and Argentina through colonial influences as well as indigenous ball courts in Mayan, Aztec, Zapotec, Mixtec, and Olmec societies, Christopher Gaffney's study spans both ancient and contemporary worlds, linking the development of stadiums to urbanization and the consolidation of nation building in two of Latin America's most intriguing megacities. "Using the football stadium as an illuminating cultural lens, Temples of the Earthbound Gods examines many aspects of urban culture that play out within these monumental architectural forms, including spirituality, violence, rigid social norms, anarchy, and also expressions of sexuality and gender. Tracing the history of the game in Brazil and Argentina through colonial influences as well as indigenous ball courts in Mayan, Aztec, Zapotec, Mixtec, and Olmec societies, Christopher Gaffney's study spans both ancient and contemporary worlds, linking the development of stadiums to urbanization and the consolidation of nation building in two of Latin America's most intriguing megacities."--BOOK JACKET. The stadium in theory and practice Rio de Janeiro : spiritual home of world football Stadiums and society in twenty-first century Rio de Janeiro Buenos Aires : estadiolandia Class and conflict in the stadiums of Buenos Aires Comparative cultural urbanism Appendix A. Stadiums in Rio de Janeiro, 2008 Appendix B. Clubs and stadiums in Buenos Aires, 2007 Appendix C. Time line, Brazil Appendix D. Time line, Argentina. In Rio de Janeiro, the spiritual home of world football, and Buenos Aires, the game is an integral part of national identity. Using the football stadium as an illuminating cultural lens, this work examines many aspects of urban culture that play out within these architectural forms, including spirituality, violence, social norms, and anarchy.