“Baile Donde Quieras”: The Global Politics of Black Dance in Football

On September 16, 2022, Real Madrid footballer Vinícius Jr. posted on social media to push back against racist responses to his dance goal celebrations, stating, “I won’t stop dancing. Whether at the Sambodrome, at the Bernabéu or wherever.” In this article, we trace the political impact of Vinícius Jr.'s football goal celebrations that draw on racialized Afro-Brazilian dance traditions and a larger Black diasporic football politics. Next, we contend that because these racialized histories of Black diasporic music and dance traditions continue to impact how Black bodies are policed, looking to Vinícius Jr. allows us to think through Recollet's “jumping scale” as a way for the Black body to dance beyond settler geographies. Finally, we posit that reconfiguring power means building a Black transnational football political power that is constructed through music, dance, and goal celebrations rooted in Black diasporic resistance.