TITLE:
Football, Identity, and Belonging: The Case of Highlanders Football Club and the Ndebele People in Zimbabwe
AUTHORS:
Brian Mqondisi Sibanda
KEYWORDS:
Mthwakazi, Highlanders Football Club, Ndebele Identity, Football Fandom, Renaissance, Football Rivalry
JOURNAL NAME:
Open Access Library Journal,
Vol.13 No.3,
March
30,
2026
ABSTRACT: Football serves as a powerful medium for shaping identities and fostering belonging across local, national, and transnational communities. In Zimbabwe, Highlanders Football Club (FC), founded in 1926 by descendants of the founding King, Mzilikazi ka Matshobana, represents more than a sports institution; it embodies historical, ethnic, and political narratives that transcend the game. Using the Social Identity Theory, this study examines how Highlanders fosters a sense of belonging and cultural expression, particularly among the Ndebele people, within Zimbabwe’s broader socio-political context. The study employed a qualitative approach where in-depth interviews were carried out with former and current players, administration and supporters of Highlanders FC. Stadium ethnography was also used to explore the matchday mood, songs and expressions of identity and belonging. The study found that for a Highlanders FC supporter, to go to Barbourfields stadium was a renaissance of Historical Resistance and Ethnic Pride. The songs and matchday activities are performed as identity rituals which rekindle collective memories of belonging to the Ndebele State. Collectively, these becoming acts of affirmation and resistance work together to strengthen the sense of Ndebele belonging and identity amongst the supporters of Highlanders FC.