Jersey sponsors in football/soccer: the industry classification of main jersey sponsors of 1147 football/soccer clubs in top leagues of 79 countries

The growing popularity and developments in football/soccer have affected the football/soccer industry dramatically. The popularity and developments have increased the interest of companies in the last two or three decades. Companies have started to invest and become a sponsor of football/soccer clubs. Jersey sponsorship has emerged as a result of the increasing interest and investments. Nowadays, the jersey sponsorship is popular and has become an important type of revenue source for football/soccer clubs. As a result of popularity of jersey sponsorship, jersey sponsors must be investigated and analysed. This paper deals with the industry classification of the main jersey sponsors which have names and logos on the front of the football/soccer clubs home jerseys. A total of 1147 football/soccer clubs in 79 countries top leagues, as of 31 December 2012, have been investigated. The Industry Classification Benchmark is used to classify the industries of the main jersey sponsors of football/soccer clubs.     

Does english football warrant the rooney rule? assessing the thoughts of british asian coaches

This article examines the Rooney Rule and offers the thoughts of British Asian football coaches working in English football in response to this policy implementation. The Rooney Rule, first piloted by English Football League (EFL) clubs during the 2016–17 season, makes it compulsory for all 72 EFL clubs to interview at least one black, Asian or minority ethnic (BAME) candidate (if an application has been received) for all managerial and first-team coaching roles. And, on 9 January 2018, the Football Association revealed that they had also adopted the Rooney Rule for all coaching jobs relating to the England national team. Because English football harbours so few BAME coaches, calls for the Rooney Rule to be introduced in English football had started to increase in volume, and led to its trial inception. But, is this policy welcomed or opposed among British Asian coaches? What fundamental barriers does this policy overlook? Is English football ready for the Rooney Rule? And, do British Asian coaches, a group believed to benefit from this positive action policy, deem that this rule is the answer to help facilitate positive change? With the aid of empirical research, this article critically examines and assesses the potential impact of the Rooney Rule and recommends additional inclusionary practices.

Abbreviations: BAME: Black, Asian or Minority Ethnic; CBP: The Coach Bursary Programme; EFL: English Football League; EPL: English Premier League; HLCE: Higher Level Coach Education; FA: Football Association; FBL: Football Bowl Subdivision; LMA: League Managers Association; NFL: National Football League; PFA: Professional Footballers' Association; UEFA: Union of European Football Associations.     

中国、欧洲足球运动员转会制度分析

转会作为对社会资源进行再分配的一种方式,是当今足球市场中一个非常重要的组成部分。分析了转会对于俱乐部和球员的意义,从各种转会体系的主要特征、影响等角度,对欧洲足球和中国足球转会体系的演变过程进行了阐述;对于中国转会体系的完善问题,提供了一些建设性的建议。     

Football and its continuity as a classless mass phenomenon in Germany and England: rethinking the bourgeoisification of football crowds

Considering football’s popular notion of a working-class sport in England and Germany – at least in the 1950s – the shift towards present classless fandom in football is mainly explained by the genesis of a middle-class fan culture induced by the process of football’s accumulating (hyper-) commodification. However, this so-called ‘bourgeoisification thesis’ cannot be verified on the basis of empirical data – neither on the basis of the employment status of people attending football matches in the stadia of the top league clubs in England and Germany between 1977 and 2009 nor on the basis of representative data pertaining to the social-class profile of regular readers of German football magazines carried out in 1954. It is demonstrated that football has enjoyed continuous popularity among all social classes. Hence, the bourgeoisification of football fandom can basically be ascribed to the inter- and intra-generational upward mobility in postmodern societies induced by socio-structural change.     

中国与欧洲足球转会制度的比较

通过对中欧足球俱乐部、中欧足球转会规定以及中欧足球运动员转会情况的比较，分析中国足球现行转会制度所存在的弊端，借鉴欧洲足球转会制度的经验，提出了建立中国足球俱乐部转会制度的对策和建议。     

中国足球俱乐部经营提升的策略研究

通过对中国足球宏观环境中经济、人口、社会文化三个因素的剖析,结合中国职业足球俱乐部的经营现状,发现中国足球俱乐部面临经营资金不足、赢利模式单一,俱乐部产权、组织结构不明晰,高水平经营管理缺失,俱乐部品牌经营观念淡薄等现实问题.在此基础上提出中国足球俱乐部应在经营上拓宽筹资渠道、完善赢利模式,引进培养高级经营管理人才,树立品牌意识、塑造品牌内涵,成为真正符合国际足球运动发展趋势的独立企业.     

Cultural Continuity and Football in Nineteenth-century Lancashire

This article outlines the rich local cultural sporting practices endemic in south and east Lancashire from the 1820s through to the 1880s, particularly in the Bolton-Darwen-Blackburn triangle. These included playing football and foot-racing for money and other prizes; links with commercialism via the licensed trade and betting are also stressed. The existence of a localized football culture in this area, in a period when many historians have suggested that football development was confined to the public schools, helps to explain the transition to full professionalism in Lancashire during the 1880s. The transitional links are especially evident in the small-sided games played for money at athletics festivals organized by the newly-formed association clubs from the 1870s and into the early 1880s.     

我国职业足球俱乐部的制度环境分析

以分析我国职业足球的制度环境为切入点，从宏观和操作层面论述了我国职业足球的制度构建以来的制度环境，继而论述了以资本化为切入点的组织形式变动方式、以产权规制为突破口的俱乐部制度调整和以宏观制度创新为保证的职业足球发展需要的基本问题。     

Grass-roots football,autonomous activity and the forging of new social relationships

This study highlights the efforts of grass-roots, not-for-profit football clubs to create a sustainable game that, at the elite level, has become decoupled from the local communities most originated from. Examples are offered of clubs specifically set up in response to what are seen as unacceptable levels of infringement by the market into football, and of clubs that have been specifically set up as part of a wider organizational resistance to the ravages of neoliberalism. Fundamentally, the task here is to contextualize these clubs in relation to their various points of resistance and involvement in the dynamics of commodification and decommodification and within this context to provide conclusions regarding the meaning and significance of these organizations. Thus located, it is argued that elements of the grass-roots game form part of an alternative social relation irreconcilable with the current social system that views us as passive consumers of the commodities it produces; a social relation which creates the possibility of a non-alienating system for the provision of our needs operating via a network of enterprises outside of the laws of the market.     

Institutional perspectives on the implementation of disability legislation and services for Spectators with Disabilities in European professional football

Contemporary national and international football governing bodies and professional football clubs are expected to comply with stadium accessibility laws and regulations. They are also required to demonstrate that they are responsible to all their customers, including those who experience impairment and/or disability as part of their Corporate Social Responsibility (CSR) policies. One strategy to address stadium accessibility and wider-equity issues for spectators with disabilities (SwD) and their companions, is through appointing the ‘incipient managerial position’ of the Disability Liaison Officer (DLO). This exploratory paper is motivated by a paucity of studies examining impairment and/or disability within sport management. Drawing on institutional theory (DiMaggio and Powell, 1983, Friedland and Alford, 1991) this paper seeks to address this gap by examining the implementation of disability legislation in professional football within England, Germany and Spain. This paper critically reviews both the actions of the governing bodies and clubs to interpret and implement services for Spectators with Disabilities (SwD). Our findings revealed a significant variance in the depth of policy implementation between these countries. This variation was due to the relationship between the prevailing institutional logic and the management of accessibility which resulted, or did not result in isomorphism occurring. The article concludes with implications for the management of sport and a call for further research into the implementation of equity policies.     

Return to play after acute infectious disease in football players

Abstract

Acute infectious diseases are common in athletes and can impair their ability to train and to compete. Furthermore, continuing exercise during infectious diseases may lead to prolongation or aggravation of illness with severe acute or chronic organ manifestations. Therefore, even simple infectious diseases require a sufficient period of convalescence and recovery, during which exercise may be not allowed. Nowadays, especially in professional football with high pressures on players, staff and clubs due to broad public interests as well as financial constraints, the return-to-play decision is of utmost significance. Based on previous suggestions and our own experience within amateur and professional athletes and football players, this article aims to give a short overview on return-to-play decisions after common acute infectious diseases in football players.     

Do they make a difference? Professional team sports clubs’ effects on migration and local growth: Evidence from Denmark

It is a common argument in Denmark that municipal involvement in professional team sports can be justified on the grounds of local impact. The use of public funds to directly or indirectly subsidise local professional team sports clubs (PTSCs) is often seen as warranted due to the PTSCs’ positive effects on local economic growth or (inbound) municipal migration. However, can PTSCs be associated with tangible effects at all? This question has never been answered properly in a European context. Based on data covering the 2008–2013 period, and using spatial panel regression models, this article examines this issue in relation to three dominant professional sports in Denmark: football (soccer), handball and ice hockey. The study finds effects for only one of the sports examined, with Danish handball clubs exercising a marginal effect on average income. Ice hockey’s effect is negative and football remains insignificant in all models deployed. Concerning migration, negative effects are found in relation to female handball clubs. These findings are consistent with previous research and have implications for local sport policies and managers. Municipal politicians, public authorities or sport managers should no longer rationalise the use of public funds for local PTSCs on the assumption of (tangible) economic effects or population growth, as it appears to be an inefficient use of public money. If policy makers want to increase municipal income or inbound migration, they should engage themselves in developing more appropriate strategies.     

Exploring athletic identity in elite-level English youth football: a cross-sectional approach

Abstract

This study is the first empirical investigation that has explored levels of athletic identity in elite-level English professional football. The importance of understanding athletes’ psychological well-being within professional sport has been well documented. This is especially important within the professional football industry, given the high attrition rate (Anderson, G., & Miller, R. M. (2011). The academy system in English professional football: Business value or following the herd? University of Liverpool, Management School Research Paper Series. Retrieved from http://www.liv.ac.uk/managementschool/research/working%20papers/wp201143.pdf) and distinct occupational practices (Roderick, M. (2006). The work of professional football. A labour of love? London: Routledge). A total of 168 elite youth footballers from the English professional football leagues completed the Athletic Identity Measurement Scale (AIMS). Multilevel modelling was used to examine the effect of playing level, living arrangements and year of apprentice on the total AIMS score and its subscales (i.e., social identity, exclusivity and negative affectivity). Football club explained 30% of the variance in exclusivity among players (P = .022). Mean social identity was significantly higher for those players in the first year of their apprenticeship compared to the second year (P = .025). All other effects were not statistically significant (P > .05). The novel and unique findings have practical implications in the design and implementation of career support strategies with respect to social identity. This may facilitate the maintenance of motivation over a 2-year apprenticeship and positively impact on performance levels within the professional football environment.     

The relationship between football and literature in the novels of Irvine Welsh

This article examines the relationship between football and literature in the novels of Irvine Welsh, taking a cultural materialist approach in treating all cultural production as equally significant in the construction of societies. Irvine Welsh’s novels are chosen to demonstrate the value of this approach as they discuss football extensively. Within Welsh’s work, the Edinburgh club Hibernian are depicted positively as having intelligent, independently minded fans. They reject Unionism as a political and cultural ideal, following Welsh’s own personal views. Fans of Hibernian’s rivals, Heart of Midlothian (Hearts) and Rangers are continually derided as Unionist, racist and sectarian. Welsh depicts socialization in the values associated with football clubs as a key element in the development of Scottish males. The values he ascribes to clubs are exaggerated but due to the popular success of Welsh’s work, they can have a strong impact on how individuals perceive Hibernian, Hearts, and Rangers.     

球员租借在中国球员转会市场上的可行性研究

球员租借在欧洲兴起并得到很大发展，在2003年冬天欧洲的球员转会市场上，交换和租借性质的转会几乎统领了所有交易。由于现代足球在我国发展比较晚，各项体制和制度不尽完善，以租借形式的球员流动在中国转会市场上几乎凤毛麟角。分析球员租借的利弊，结合我国国情，初步探讨了在我国球员转会市场上实施球员租借的可行性。     

欧洲职业足球俱乐部所有权特征研究

欧洲职业足球俱乐部所有权形式多种多样,包括会员协会、私人公司和公众公司三种,其中私人公司最多。德国、西班牙还保留了一些原始的会员协会所有的俱乐部,超过一半的英格兰足球俱乐部已经被外国投资者控股。绝大多数欧洲职业足球俱乐部都实行了公司化改造。公众公司形式的俱乐部所有权形式成为欧洲职业足球俱乐部普遍的现象。总之,欧洲职业足球俱乐部所有权具有多样性、公司性、开放性和国际化特征。     

职业足球俱乐部的城市功能——以上海市职业足球俱乐部为例

采用文献资料调研、专家访谈、问卷调查等方法,以上海市职业足球俱乐部为例,对职业足球俱乐部对城市功能作用进行研究分析。研究认为,我国职业足球俱乐部的经济建设还很不成熟;职业足球俱乐部的文化建设与国外还有很大差距;职业足球俱乐部对城市社会功能的影响还很不清晰等。     

我国足球产业的形成与发展策略

通过对我国足球产业发展现状的分析,结合我国足球产业发展的历史与现实环境,指出了中国足球产业发展存在的主要问题,并提出了对策：使职业足球俱乐部具有产权清晰的投资机制;提高足球竞赛表演质量;无形资产的开发利用应成为俱乐部主要的经营内容;构建职业足球俱乐部管理体系;形成政俱分开的管理机制.     

The logotypes of football clubs as expressions of collective identities: a socio-semiotic approach

This paper focuses on 119 logotypes that are depicted on European football club kits. The football clubs were selected based on their participation in the first two rounds of the UEFA Champions League competitions and in specific in its first two rounds covering a period of time from 1993 to 2010. Our research interest focuses on the significance of ideological loading in terms of the codes occurring in team logos as symbols of collective identities. Our view was, firstly, that logotypes have absorbed and internalized values and stereotypes from the wider social sphere (paradigmatic axis) and, secondly, that there is a common structuring of logos in terms of codes (syntagmatic axis). Our research is based on socio-semiotic methodology, which is not confined to a formalistic approach of texts, but scrutinizes them as an integral part of a material, socio-economic and political context. The analysis led to a series of important data referring to the structuring of team logos as well as to how these logos are related.     

中外职业足球俱乐部的组织结构设计比较

分析我国职业足球俱乐部组织结构的发展历程、现状以及与国外职业足球俱乐部组织结构设计的差异,发现我国职业足球俱乐部的组织结构设计不断发展,以战绩为核心的组织结构设计特征明显,忽视了经营开发和公共关系管理。通过研究,建议我国职业足球俱乐部采用扁平化的组织结构设计、依托母公司管理资源完善业务部门设置,最后从根本上提出了新的组织结构设计模型。