Regulation of professional sport in a changing broadcasting environment: Australian club and sport broadcaster perspectives

Broadcasting is undergoing massive changes with technology introducing new delivery opportunities and thereby more broadcasters into the equation. Emerging technology in the sport broadcasting environment is complicated by the existing league and broadcasting regulations. League-based regulations impact on income distribution and product distribution, while broadcasting regulations, largely imposed by the elected Federal Government of the day, are enacted to ensure that commercial and public interests are being supported. Introducing a stakeholder interest-based approach, the regulation affecting professional sport clubs and broadcasters was examined in order to identify how they would respond to the regulation imposed on them in the emerging broadcasting environment.In depth interviewing of senior managers of Australian Football League (AFL) and National Rugby League (NRL) clubs as well as sport broadcasters was undertaken with the data analysed, and emergent themes recorded. Results indicate that league, broadcaster and government regulations impact on the clubs and broadcasters in a variety of ways, with clubs facing regulation from the league and the broadcasters, while the broadcasters and league face regulation from the government legislation enacted. The results indicate that these organisations need to be aware of the conditions that arise from the existing and emerging broadcast regulatory environment in order to better understand and respond to it.     

职业体育反垄断豁免制度初探

职业体育基于体育和商业的双重性,表现出垄断与竞争的特殊性.实践中,一方面,职业体育受到反垄断法的调整;另一方面,它不同程度地被纳入反垄断豁免制度之中.这不仅有着深刻的理论基础,也被其他国家和地区的法律实践所映证.随着我国反垄断法的颁布实施,有必要对我国职业体育的反垄断豁免制度作出前瞻性思考,明确原则,把握尺度,尽早加以规范.     

Enhancing the benefits of professional sport philanthropy: The roles of corporate ability and communication strategies

Building upon scholarly work on corporate associations, social identity, and corporate philanthropy, this study aimed to: (1) identify the effect of perceived corporate ability (CA) associations of professional sport organizations (PSO) on consumer support of their nonprofit partners and (2) understand communication strategies that enable PSOs to gain greater business benefits from their philanthropic activities. The results of an experiment supported the role of perceived CA in influencing consumer intentions to donate to a PSO's nonprofit partner, and further showed that this perception had a greater effect when respondents’ identification with the PSO was low. The finding also indicated that a message describing a PSO's donation of a large amount of money for a cause could create positive attitudes toward the PSO. These findings extend recent work on professional sport philanthropy by demonstrating that—under certain conditions—such an activity can enhance benefits for both PSOs and their nonprofit partners.     

The experience of captaincy in professional sport: The case of elite professional rugby

The captain is perceived to be an important member of the leadership structure within teams across many professional sports. However, while there is a general acceptance that this is the case, there is very little research exploring the role and associated demands at an elite level. As a result, the aim of this study was to explore the captaincy experiences of elite professional rugby union captains. The participants were eight male captains purposefully sampled for this study. Participants were interviewed individually to gain an understanding of each participant’s captaincy experiences. The data were thematically analysed using interpretative phenomenological analysis. Nine super-ordinate themes emerged in the study: role, skills, requirements, challenges, the coach, development, experience, context, and approach. Results suggest that the captaincy role is broader than previously highlighted, particularly at the elite level. Also, the study highlights inconsistencies in the selection of captains and a lack of formal developmental support for elite rugby captains. As a result, future research should explore the development of specific evidence-based approaches to captain selection and development.     

Emotion in sport: considering interpersonal regulation strategies

Research into emotion regulation in sport has predominantly focused on intrapersonal regulation of emotion response systems (i.e. subjective experience, cognitions, behaviours or physiological responses). However, researchers in social psychology have suggested that the emotion regulation process is inherently social and interpersonal. This shift represents a significant change in how emotion regulation is conceptualized and, given the intensity of emotions experienced in sport, represents a potentially productive line of enquiry. This review addresses interpersonal emotion regulation in sport, and draws attention to work in social psychology that might inform future sports research. Specifically, the utility of social-functional approaches will be considered.     

Preparing to not be a footballer: higher education and professional sport

In the commercialised and professionalised world of elite sport, issues associated with career pathways and post sporting career options have a particular resonance. In various football codes, an unexpected knock, twist, bend or break can profoundly impact a player's career. In this high risk and high consequence environment, a number of sports entertainment industries have instituted player development and education programmes to educate and prepare elite level performers for life after football. Drawing on Foucault's later work on governmentality and the care of the self, this paper will discuss findings from a research project funded by the Australian Football League (AFL). The paper presents data that suggests that, elite performers are so focused on establishing and prolonging a career as an elite performer, that other aspects of identity are seen as something to be complied with as a consequence of industry expectations. An industry emphasis on higher education raises issues for the sports industries that promote player enrolment in higher education and for the higher education institutions that must manage this lack of engagement.     

Examining the factors influencing organizational creativity in professional sport organizations

Increasingly, globalization and the adoption of a market economy have made innovation fundamental for the success of professional sport organizations. Yet oligarchical league structures, isomorphic and hyper-traditional cultures, and hierarchical organizational structures can enhance or hinder organizational creativity, the beginning stage of the innovation process. Therefore, the purpose of this research is to determine the antecedents of organizational creativity in professional sport organizations. Perception of organizational creativity is theorized to be influenced by employee creativity, work environment, and the social interactions of employees. The results, based on a survey of three professional sport organizations’ front offices, indicated perceptions of a work environment with a clear vision and better work processes were associated with greater perceptions of organizational creativity. The lack of relationships between many of the factors theorized to influence organizational creativity, such as an employee’s advice network, could indicate the sport industry is unique in creativity management. This study is the beginning in understanding the first step of innovation, and the processes that influence employees’ perceptions regarding the ways in which their work environment relate to organizational creativity.     

Core values brand building in sport: Stakeholder attitudes towards intercollegiate athletics and university brand congruency

The purpose of this case study was to investigate stakeholder attitudes toward athletic department behavioral congruency with the stated core values of a major BCS¹ university located in the Southwestern portion of the United States. Research has indicated that positive and negative attitudes toward intercollegiate athletics can contribute to the perceptions of congruency with the established university mission and values. Over time, however, the increase in negative attitudes attributed to athletic department behavior brings into question their congruency with the university core values. Document analysis and personal interviews (N = 13) were conducted with individuals from each of six university internal and external stakeholder groups. Findings revealed four primary themes: (a) Excellence Equals Winning, (b) For Public Relations Purposes Only, (c) Separation and Isolation of the Athletic Department, and (d) Lack of Leadership from the Top-Down. Implications and future research concerning university brand image and core value accountability are discussed.     

Towards a critical sport heritage: implications for sport tourism

ABSTRACT

This paper reflects upon the development and increased acceptance for heritage becoming a key component of sport tourism research. The original sport heritage typology, as posited by Ramshaw and Gammon [2005, More than just Nostalgia? Exploring the heritage/sport tourism nexus. Journal of Sport & Tourism, 10(4), 229–241], is re-examined through a more critical lens, revealing additional dimensions that help augment its key components. More specifically, it is argued that future studies should consider the more intangible features of sport heritage, as well as acknowledging the expanding global nature of sport and its impact upon fandom. Also, the case is made for research to explore the dissonance inherent in much of sports heritage, as well as determining where the power lies in allocating and championing current sport heritages. Lastly, the more general implications to the field of sport tourism are offered with particular regard to motivation, place, and consumption.     

Establishing a professional Rugby Union Football League in the USA: Managing institutional pluralism in sport entrepreneurship

Given the growth of sport leagues globally, we sought to understand how sport entrepreneurs addressed institutional plurality as they worked to establish a new professional sport league in the USA. Drawing on institutional pluralism, we critically examine two efforts to establish professional rugby union football leagues in the USA. Pluralism resulted in tensions among rugby stakeholders. While both leagues sought to reconcile tensions through institutional infrastructure work, one of the leagues garnered more stakeholder support as it was attentive to more institutional contexts. The other league’s infrastructure work was limited and resulted in the alienation of many important rugby stakeholders. Our research demonstrates the theoretical and practical importance of institutional infrastructure work within sport entrepreneurship, especially when navigating institutional pluralism.     

New directions in the arts and sport? Critiquing national strategies

Abstract

Taking as its starting point the Fields of Vision initiative’s interest in promoting the potential benefits of bringing sports and arts closer together, this paper reviews how national (English) policy addresses that challenge. Four key strategic documents (the Government’s Sport Strategy and its Culture White Paper as well as the strategies of Arts Council England and Sport England) are examined. That is supplemented by the views of significant individuals from this interface, including the research network funded by the Arts and Humanities Research Council (AHRC). Noting the similar social remit ascribed to sport and the arts by the government, shortcomings in the current strategies are identified as barriers to integration. ‘Play’ and ‘movement’ are briefly discussed as integrating concepts alongside our assessment of the potential of the arts/sport nexus, in areas including aesthetic innovation, promoting health and wellbeing, and encouraging wider participation and engagement. Having challenged existing national policies the paper suggests possible future directions.     

College students' perspectives, goals, and strategies in sport education

We examined the perspective, goals, and strategies of students enrolled in collegiate physical education courses. Our aim was to determine the extent to which a model developed by Allen (1986) describing student-social systems in high schools would approximate those in a collegiate setting. Forty-six students from two elective volleyball classes completed online surveys and participated in group interviews. It was determined that while specific parts of the original model were appropriate for describing college students' agendas for physical education, participation in the Sport Education model provided a more complimentary (in contrast to adversarial) link between the students' quest for good grades and their socializing strategies. A more appropriate model is presented.     

体育比赛中的客场劣势及其对策

客场劣势对比赛成绩的影响不容忽视。针对引起客场劣势的观众、气候、化、时差、裁判、比赛动机等主要因素的分析，提出降低客场劣势的训练措施，帮助教练员和运动员在比赛中把客场劣势降低到最小程度。     

Coach strategies for addressing psychosocial challenges during the return to sport from injury

Abstract

The purpose of this study was to examine coach strategies for addressing athletes' psychosocial challenges in returning to sport following injury rehabilitation. Qualitative interviews with eight elite coaches from the Western Australian Institute of Sport (WAIS) in Perth, Australia revealed that coaches facilitated athletes' return to sport from injury through a variety of means, but did not typically provide systematic forms of assistance. Coaches commented that the idiosyncratic nature of the injury experience meant that they needed to apply strategies consistent with athletes' particular psychosocial needs. Such strategies included: (a) coordination of a “team approach” to rehabilitation; (b) fostering open communication with athletes and treatment team members; (c) social support; (d) positive thinking and goal setting; and (e) role models. Analysis of these strategies revealed that coaches attempted to address competence, autonomy, and relatedness needs in facilitating athletes' return from injury. These findings suggest that self-determination theory may be a valuable approach for examining coach forms of assistance regarding athletes' return to competition following injury. Findings are discussed in relation to injury literature and self-determination theory. Suggestions for future research are also presented.     

金融危机下我国职业体育的生存契机

运用文献资料、逻辑分析、实证分析等方法,就金融危机爆发以来对我国职业体育的影响做出分析。此次金融危机对我国职业体育带来的影响和冲击,显示出行业本身的管理和经营中存在过分商业化等许多缺憾与不足。我国的职业体育正处于高速发展时期,加强和规范管理,规范市场运作、拓宽市场,按我国国情和市场化结合的运作方式大胆创新,优化和整合资源配置,寻求具有中国特色的生存之道,不但能减少危机所带来的损失和影响,还能使这次金融危机成为规范和发展我国职业体育市场的重大契机。     

Community-oriented practice: Examining corporate social responsibility and development activities in professional sport

Professional sport teams are increasingly engaging in activities that target community development agendas. Previous researchers have examined why teams engage in such activities and the value they derive from a corporate social responsibility (CSR) perspective; however, an understanding of the nature and focus of such activities is only beginning to emerge and further research attention is necessary. To address this gap, the authors draw on both CSR and sport-for-development (SFD) literature to examine community activities undertaken by professional sport teams. An exploratory case study methodology was employed, using a multi-case design to examine the activities of 70 professional sport teams across the commercially dominant league in each of three regions (Australia, the UK, and the US). A total of 1243 initiatives were recorded and analysed to build a profile of the nature and focus of the community activities undertaken. These were classified into 14 specific categories and analysis identified three core groups of activities: giving, activating and capacity building. Teams primarily targeted health and education agendas; however, differences were observed across regions. Teams in the US engaged more heavily in giving activities, whereas teams in the UK more commonly engaged in capacity-building activities. Variations were also observed with respect to target agenda, demonstrating differences within practices across regions. The authors propose community-oriented practices as a concept to describe the community-focused activities undertaken by professional sport teams at the intersection of CSR and SFD, and a working definition of this concept is offered.     

Education in the Chinese national sport system: experiences of professional wushu athletes

Abstract

Within the Chinese national sport system, the government provides resources and funding to train athletes from a young age to become high-performance competitors. Though athletes are well supported to excel in their sport, during their years of intense physical training, athletes generally receive little to no formal education to prepare them for life outside of sport. The sacrifice of forgoing formal education to compete in elite level sport is not uncommon for athletes within centralized sporting systems and has been widely documented; however, there is little research that focuses on the impact of the team’s educational systems from the perspective of the athletes. To add to the growing body of research in this area, the authors utilized in-depth interviews to examine professional wushu athletes’ education experiences whilst training on their team. Thematic analysis of the findings revealed that athletes who committed themselves to sport training in the Chinese national system had to negotiate a number of factors related to time, motivation, social influences, and resources when it came to education and academia. Findings highlight the ways in which these athletes experience and come to terms with limited academic opportunities, preparation and support from their team and the training environment.     

Challenges and strategies of building and sustaining inter-organizational partnerships in sport for development and peace

While sport management scholars have explored inter-organizational partnerships and their associated challenges, they have devoted less attention to inter-organizational partnership development and sustainability in sport for development and peace (SDP), particularly across a wide range of organizations with varied missions and foci. Hence, the purpose of this qualitative study was to examine challenges faced by SDP organizations when forming and sustaining inter-organizational partnerships across contexts and partnership types, and to uncover strategies they have employed to overcome these challenges. Common challenges encountered across 29 SDP organizations included competition for resources, skepticism of sport as a development tool, unequal power relations, misaligned goals and mission drift, and implementation issues. Strategies included focusing on building relationships and networks, demonstrating benefits to partner, starting small then diversifying, keeping focused on mission and goals, involving partner, and treating the partnership as a business relationship. Theoretical extensions and practical implications are discussed, along with directions for future research.     

长三角地区体育旅游资源开发的战略研究

分析了长三角地区体育旅游资源的优势,并提出了体育旅游资源的开发对策:通过深化长三角区域旅游竞合及产品结构调整,进一步拓展长三角地区体育旅游深度,注重经济效益、社会效益、生态效益的有机统一,从而实现长三角地区体育旅游的可持续发展。