Brain activity goes to extremes in soccer fans, neuroimaging reveals

Studying brain patterns in soccer fans, researchers found that certain circuit regions of the brain were activated while viewing soccer matches involving their favorite team, triggering positive and negative emotions and behaviors, according to a new study published in Radiology. The researchers say these patterns could apply to other types of fanaticism as well, and that the circuits are forged early in life.

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 situations.

Rivalries run deep in the history of sports, and fans can be very protective of their "home" team and favorite players. These same fans run the gamut of emotions watching their team succeed or fail over the course of a game or match, cheering when they score or raging at a bad call. Soccer fans are known for their team loyalty and enthusiasm, particularly in Europe and South America.

Soccer fandom provides a high-ecological-validity model of fanaticism with quantifiable life consequences for health and collective behaviour.

For the study, researchers used functional MRI (fMRI)—a technique that measures brain activity by detecting changes in blood flow—to examine 60 healthy male soccer fans (20–45 years) of two historical rivals. Fanaticism was quantified with the Football Supporters Fanaticism Scale, a 13-item scale that measures the fanaticism of football fans, assessing two sub-dimensions: "Inclination to Violence" and "Sense of Belongingness."

Brain imaging 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 conducted to compare neural responses when participants viewed their favorite team scoring against an archrival (significant victory) versus when the archrival scored against their team (significant defeat), with control conditions for non-rival goals.

The fMRI results showed that brain activity changed when the fan's team succeeded or failed.

Rivalry rapidly reconfigures the brain's valuation–control balance within seconds. With significant victory, the reward circuitry in the brain is amplified relative to non-rival wins, whereas in significant defeat the dorsal anterior cingulate cortex (dACC)—which plays an important role in cognitive control—shows paradoxical suppression of control signals.

Part 1

Paradoxical suppression refers to the attempt to suppress a thought, feeling or behavior and it results in the opposite outcome.

Higher activation in the reward system regions occurred when participants' teams scored against rivals versus non-rivals, suggesting in-group bonding and social identity reinforcement.
The effect is strongest in highly fanatic participants, predicting momentary self-regulatory failure precisely when identity is threatened and accounting for the puzzling ability of otherwise rational individuals to suddenly "flip" at matches.
Clinically, the pattern implies a state-dependent vulnerability whereby a brief cooling-off or removal from triggers might permit the dACC/salience control system to recover.
The same neural signature—reward up, control down under rivalry—likely generalizes beyond sport to political and sectarian conflicts, say the researchers.
The neural results identify mechanisms which may inform communication, crowd management, and prevention strategies around high-stakes events in the reward amplification and control down-regulation under rivalry, they conclude.

Brain Mechanisms across the Spectrum of Engagement in Football Fans: A Functional Neuroimaging Study, Radiology (2025).

Part 2

Pancreatic cancer forms 'synapses,' scientists discover

Pancreatic cancer cells form pseudosynapses that exploit the nervous system by taking up glutamate via NMDA receptors, triggering calcium influx and sustained signaling that promotes tumor growth and metastasis. Blocking these receptors in mice slowed tumor progression and reduced metastases, suggesting a potential therapeutic target. Similar mechanisms may exist in other tumor types.

Lei Ren et al, Sensory neurons drive pancreatic cancer progression through glutamatergic neuron-cancer pseudo-synapses, Cancer Cell (2025). DOI: 10.1016/j.ccell.2025.09.003