Symbolic leadership, political legitimacy, and cricket fandom withdrawal amid Imran Khan’s imprisonment

This study examines how political crises, perceived institutional illegitimacy, and symbolic leadership shape fan engagement with national cricket among a segment of Pakistani fans following the imprisonment of Imran Khan. Drawing on 25 in-depth interviews with Pakistani cricket fans who altered or ceased engagement following the imprisonment of Imran Khan, the study employs reflexive thematic analysis within an interpretivist–constructivist framework. The analysis reveals that participants interpreted cricket governance as politically embedded, morally compromised, and symbolically aligned with state power, leading to conditional fandom, symbolic boycott, emotional withdrawal, and debates over the contamination of sport by politics. The findings suggest that disengagement among these fans in Pakistan operates less as organized protest and more as individualized moral positioning rooted in national identity and symbolic leadership. By situating sport fandom within broader struggles over legitimacy, morality, and belonging in contemporary South Asia, the study contributes to understanding how political crises reshape everyday cultural practices beyond formal political arenas.