Brain Mechanisms across the Spectrum of Engagement in Football Fans: A Functional Neuroimaging Study

Background Football (also called soccer) is a global phenomenon, and its followers exhibit a broad spectrum of behaviors, from spectatorship to intense emotional engagement, providing a useful model for studying social identity and emotional processing in competitive contexts. Although social affiliation has been widely studied, the neurobiological mechanisms of social identity in competitive settings are unclear. Purpose To investigate the brain mechanisms associated with emotional responses in football fans to their teams' victories and losses via functional MRI. Materials and Methods This prospective study was conducted from April 2019 to October 2022 and included healthy male football fans who underwent brain functional MRI. On the basis of Football Supporters Fanaticism Scale scores, the participants were classified as spectators, fans, or fanatics. Functional neuroimaging data were acquired while participants watched 63 goal sequences from matches involving their favorite team, a rival, or a neutral team. A whole-brain analysis was performed using a general linear model to compare neural responses when the participant's favorite team scored against an archrival (significant victory) versus when the archrival scored against their team (significant defeat), with control conditions for nonrival goals. Multiple comparison corrections were performed using cluster correction using random field theory. Results Sixty-one male football followers aged 20-45 years participated in this study. Whole-brain analysis of blood oxygenation level-dependent signal intensity and cluster-level correction revealed that significant victory was associated with increased activation in the ventral striatum, medial prefrontal cortex, and fusiform face area, reflecting reward processing and social identity reinforcement. Significant defeat was associated with increased activation of the mentalizing network, visual areas, and precuneus, with lower activation in the dorsal anterior cingulate cortex, suggesting changes in cognitive control and emotional regulation. Conclusion Football followers demonstrated activation in regions of the brain's reward system when their team scored against rival teams compared with other teams, reflecting in-group bonding and reinforcement of social identity. © RSNA, 2025 Supplemental material is available for this article. See also the editorial by Lev and Rapalino in this issue.