Digital sovereignty and leisure: Bluesky as an alternative to X’s suspension in Brazil

This paper puts into conversation the concepts of platformisation, digital sovereignty, and leisure by exploring the shift to Bluesky during the legal suspension of X in Brazil between 30th August and 8 October 2024. To analyse the impact on Brazilian users of the Supreme Court decision to block access to X’s servers during this period, we map the adoption and use of Bluesky by the 20 football clubs playing in the Brazilian first division. We use engagement metadata (e.g. likes) as a proxy for end-user adoption and map how Bluesky emerged as an alternative platform during the suspension in the consumption and production circuits that take place within the broader processes of platformisation of leisure and sport. The paper contributes to the literature on digital and platform leisure by demonstrating how digital sovereignty (e.g. state legislation) affects the platformisation of leisure and sport by reshaping user behaviours, fostering platform adoption, and transforming the consumption and production circuits of platformised sport. The broader significance of this paper relates to how political actions (in)directly intersect with leisure infrastructures and cultures.