Standardizing the goal net
Visual universality at the Uefa European Championships
Bibliographic Data
| ID | 21720178 |
|---|---|
| Authors | David Forrest (0000-0003-0565-3396, University of the Sunshine Coast, corresponding author) |
| Year | 2026 |
| Pages | 1-6 |
| Publication date | 2026-06-23 |
| Open Access | Yes |
| Type | ARTICLE |
| Venue | Soccer and Society (JOURNAL) |
| Journal identifiers | ISSN: 1466-0970 • E-ISSN: 1743-9590 |
| Publisher | Informa UK Limited (PUBLISHER • GB) |
| DOI | 10.1080/14660970.2026.2693856 |
| OpenAlex | W7165649108 |
| Language | EN |
| References cited | 3 |
Hosted by Italy, the 1980 UEFA European Championships marked the beginning of a period of regulation, standardization, harmonization, and commercial transformation for the tournament. This process included the goal net, the history of which as a recognizably differentiated stadium fixture effectively ended in the post-1980 period, when a universal style of goal net began replacing local styles at top stadia across Europe. This commentary argues the goal net encapsulates this process with unusual clarity. Its standardization represents a decisive shift in football’s visual language. It is a deviation that permits universal recognizability while simultaneously negating the local, historical, and architectural specificities that once anchored iconic moments at UEFA European Championship tournaments to particular places
Championship · Fixture · Process (computing) · Standardization · Style (visual arts) · Sport and Mega-Event Impacts · Sports Analytics and Performance · Sports, Gender, and Society
| Highly cited | No |
|---|