Football in Textile city : A study of IF Elfsborgs path through a tough but successful 1930s

The purpose of this essay has been to study IF Elfsborgs way through the economic hardships of the 1930s, a decade known as the clubs most successful. Basically, the focus has been to emphasize the decisions made by the club during this period in contrast to its surroundings and swedish society as a whole. How has the club been affected by changes in society and to what extent has the club had an impact on the working class in its home town of Borås? With this study I want to demonstrate the role of football in 1930s swedish society, and also emphasize the importance of the network of relationships between the club and the city's entrepreneurs.The source material for this study consists mainly of archival protocols such as; annual protocols, section protocols, economic accounts and activity reports. I have also used newspaper clippings, membership lists and pictures, all available at the association archive, located at the city archive in Borås. Besides the source material my main literary support during this process has been Torbjörn Anderssons Kung Fotboll (2002), along with a few others such as Rolf Pålbrants Arbetarrörelsen och idrotten 1919－1939 (1977) and Rune Jungens Vävarstad i uppror: arbetarrörelsen i Borås 1880－1920 (1978).The main result of this study has been that societal circumstances particular to Borås at the time, along with the club’s connections with the city’s business owners were crucial to maintaining a good relationship with the working class which in turn played a major role in the club’s success in the 1930s