It is an unusually cold Sunday afternoon in the dead of winter, yet a sea of black and gold roars out of a locker room with warm blood rushing. Many colorful personalities burst out onto the field and are captured by the cameras prepared to follow the intense scenes that are about to take place. It is clear that the Pittsburgh Steelers are back in town and ready to rip apart the next team that stands along their path to victory. It is time to forget about the all-star members of this championship team, though. Instead, it is time to switch focus to the secret weapon that, for the past 30 years or so, has come to be revered. Whether it is a seemingly normal Sunday afternoon or rare Monday night game, stands packed full of a yellow flag twirling Steeler Nation are ready to unleash their fury upon invaders of their territory.
President John F. Kennedy once remarked, “We are inclined to think that if we watch a football game or a baseball game, we have taken part in it.” This could not be truer for follows of the Pittsburgh Steelers, named Steeler Nation. Also, Steeler Nation has a history explaining its formation and foundation. This dedicated fan culture is comprised of a former blue-collar work force that tended the steel mills along Pittsburgh’s three rivers. Investment by firms, worldwide, involved in labor intensive industry, provided jobs for immigrants coming to America and settling in the Ohio River Valley. This ultimately created a blue-collar workforce with much ethnic diversity, but with a common bond, as well. The closing of these steel mills in the late 1970s and early 1980s would yield a diaspora of Pittsburghers that would later transform the definition of fans and fandom forever. It was Pittsburgh’s economic history and the closing of its steel mills that became the incubator for the strong feelings behind this dedicated lifestyle that can be found not only across the nation, but also worldwide. The center of the steel universe was also...