Fan culture and motivation in the context of successful women’s professional team sports: a mixed-methods case study of Portland Thorns fandom

Abstract

By the metric of average home attendance, the Portland Thorns of the National Women’s Soccer League are the most popular women’s professional sports team in the world. This paper investigates that distinct sports context through a mixed-methods case study of Thorns fandom, asking what fans themselves perceive to be salient elements of a successful fan culture for women’s professional soccer and what motivates their fandom. Drawing on survey data that are contextualized by ethnographic observations and interviews, we offer an interpretive analysis of ways Thorns fandom hybridizes elements of traditional and alternative sports fandom. Our findings highlight the emphasis Thorns fans put on quality soccer in a professional atmosphere where fans themselves create the supporters culture, along with the symbolic importance to fans of identifying with values such as gender empowerment, diversity and inclusion. We discuss ways these themes might offer and inform alternative models of sports fandom.     

Provincial governments and China’s international mega-sports events: a case study of Guangdong

This article intends to understand factors that determine provincial governments’ attitudes in supporting China’s international mega sports events. Through examining the tasks completed by the Guangdong provincial government for the 2010 Guangzhou Asian Games and the 2011 Shenzhen Summer World University Games, the findings confirmed that the political consideration of central leaders, the personal judgements of provincial authorities as well as the factional connection of municipal chiefs were all significant. The article concludes that to scrutinize all the powerful figures of the central, provincial and municipal governments is essential for future academic works with the aim of comprehending the attitude of the Chinese provincial governments towards any sport-related issues.     

Dependency,cultural identity and sporting landlords: a Scottish case‐study

Team games, initially and principally cricket but later other games, were played in mental asylums in various parts of Britain from the mid-nineteenth century, before being abandoned in the move to 'care in the community' from c.1980s. Taking as a detailed example the Norfolk Lunatic Asylum (later St Andrew's Hospital), this article examines the use of games in patient therapy. Games were originally confined to male patients but later included women. Using archival and interview sources we assess the value of such therapy, the response of the patients and the demise of the idea before the final closure of the hospital.     

The mascot that wouldn’t die: a case study of fan identification and mascot loyalty

The issue of sports mascot loyalty, especially to those mascots considered offensive, was investigated through fan identification theory, and applied to the mascot controversy at a large university in the United States. Replicating a previous university survey on the mascot question, a survey of current university students (N = 3616) revealed a strong relationship between mascot loyalty and fan identification, particularly related to one’s perceptions of ‘belonging to the university sports family’, and ‘associating with sports fans’ of the university. Other important findings include age differences and the marginalization of Asian-American fans. The implications and applications of these findings were discussed.     

Time – motion analysis of professional rugby union players during match-play

Abstract

The aim of this study was to quantify the movement patterns of various playing positions during professional rugby union match-play, such that the relative importance of aerobic and anaerobic energy pathways to performance could be estimated. Video analysis was conducted of individual players (n=29) from the Otago Highlanders during six “Super 12” representative fixtures. Each movement was coded as one of six speeds of locomotion (standing still, walking, jogging, cruising, sprinting, and utility), three states of non-running intensive exertion (rucking/mauling, tackling, and scrummaging), and three discrete activities (kicking, jumping, passing). The results indicated significant demands on all energy systems in all playing positions, yet implied a greater reliance on anaerobic glycolytic metabolism in forwards, due primarily to their regular involvement in non-running intense activities such as rucking, mauling, scrummaging, and tackling. Positional group comparisons indicated that while the greatest differences existed between forwards and backs, each positional group had its own unique demands. Front row forwards were mostly involved in activities involving gaining/retaining possession, back row forwards tended to play more of a pseudo back-line role, performing less rucking/mauling than front row forwards, yet being more involved in aspects of broken play such as sprinting and tackling. While outside backs tended to specialize in the running aspects of play, inside backs tended to show greater involvement in confrontational aspects of play such as rucking/mauling and tackling. These results suggest that rugby training and fitness testing should be tailored specifically to positional groups rather than simply differentiating between forwards and backs.     

Authentic inquiry-based learning in health and physical education: a case study of ‘r/evolutionary’ practice

Background: Greater understandings about how progressive pedagogies are interpreted and practiced within schools will be required if international calls to enhance relevance and meaning in Health and Physical Education (HPE) are to be realised. Little is understood about how inquiry-based units of work connected to real-life issues are enacted, engaged with, and generate deeper knowledge within a HPE context.

Purpose: This study explores learner outcomes and perceptions of engagement with an inquiry-based unit of work, Take Action, that aimed to provide young people with an opportunity to critically reflect on movement, investigate an issue important to them, and enhance their capacity to enact positive change for themselves and others.

Participants and setting: Forty-four students and three teachers from two secondary school settings participated in the research. Both schools were located in relatively low socio-economic status areas in southern metropolitan Melbourne, Victoria, Australia.

Data collection and analysis: An exploratory and evaluative study design that employed naturalistic inquiry, using qualitative semi-structured interview data, observational data, and analysis of learner-produced artefacts were used. Analysis drew upon authentic learning frames to explore elements of knowledge construction through disciplined inquiry and real-life application.

Findings: Take Action provided a unique experience of HPE for the students and teachers who engaged with it. It was a collaborative, learner-centred inquiry-based experience that most learners found to be engaging and authentic. Both teachers and learners lacked the foundational knowledge of the discipline and a sound understanding of a critical-inquiry process that would have allowed them to deconstruct and reconstruct new ideas in deep interconnected ways.

Conclusions: More support for teachers and students is needed to legitimate these types of approaches within broader curriculum contexts to support student learning. Specifically, foundational understandings of: socially critical approaches to critical inquiry that serve to enhance knowledge relating to learner-identified topics; learning intentions and authentic assessment and how these might align with inquiry-based learning; forming connections with external experts to support learners early in an inquiry process; and how to extend explorations and elaborations within the constraints of a congested and contested curriculum.     

A Bourdieusian analysis of cultural reproduction: socialisation and the ‘hidden curriculum’ in professional football

This article draws on the theoretical concepts of Pierre Bourdieu to provide an explanatory account of how socialisation and the hidden curriculum within coaching practice contribute toward the formation of social identities and powerful schemes of internalised dispositions. Drawing on a 10 month ethnography within professional football, the research found that day-to-day practice was ideologically laden and served the production, reproduction and incorporation of socialised agents into the prevailing ‘legitimate’ culture. The legitimacies embodied included respect for authority, hierarchical awareness, control, obedience, collectivity, work ethic and winning.     

Identity construction in professional football: the case of Brøndby IF

Professional football clubs exist in a complex environment consisting of multiple stakeholders. When a club is unable to fulfil what is expected of it, its stakeholders are usually quick to express their dissatisfaction. This constant exposure to critical voices, and the fact that clubs are deeply dependent on their stakeholders, not least financially, makes identity construction a very important task. Perceiving identity as a social process in which self-expressions and external stakeholder images interact, the purpose of this study is to examine how the Danish football club, Brøndby IF, constructs its identity. The analysis shows how Brøndby to some extent chooses to ignore external perceptions of the club, which leads to further criticism. The study suggests how football directors should prioritize to construct a well-balanced identity that includes both internal and external perceptions of the club in order to stay attractive to stakeholders and secure future collaboration and funding.     

Radial and tibial bone indices in athletes participating in different endurance sports: a pQCT study†

Low magnitude bone-loading sports may benefit bone structure and strength in the exercised limbs. This study compared peripheral quantitative computed tomography measures of radial and tibial diaphyseal strength (strength–strain index, SSI), structure (total area (ToA) and cortical area (CoA), density (CoD) and thickness (CT), and circumferences), muscle cross-sectional area (MCSA) and strength (one-repetition maximum, 1-RM) in male endurance athletes taking part in (i) non-weight-bearing and non-impact sports: swimmers (SWIM, n?=?13) and road cyclists (RC, n?=?10), (ii) non-weight-bearing, impact sport: mountain bikers (MB, n?=?10), (iii) weight bearing and impact sport: runners (RUN, n?=?9). All athlete groups were also compared to sedentary controls (CON, n?=?10). Arm MCSA, 1-RM and radial bone size and strength tended to be greater in SWIM than CON and/or RC (ToA, %difference ±?95%CI, SWIM-CON: 14.6%?±?12.7%; SWIM-RC: 12.9%?±?10.7%) but not different to MB and RUN. RUN had bigger tibial CoA than CON, SWIM and RC (CoA, RUN-CON: 12.1%?±?10.7%; RUN-SWIM: 10.9%?±?9.4%; RUN-RC: 15.8%?±?9.5%) without marked changes in tibial strength indices, lower-limb MCSA or 1-RM. Both MB and RC failed to display any difference in tibial indices, lower-limb MCSA and 1-RM compared to CON. In swimmers, the bone structure and strength of the primary exercised limbs, the arms, is greater than controls and road cyclists. Conversely, although runners experience impact and weight-bearing loading, tibial structure is greater without a substantial difference in tibial strength compared to controls and non-impact sports. Failure to observe a difference in tibial indices in MB and RC compared to controls is unexpected.     

Sports participation and health during periods of educational transition: a study of 30–35-year-olds in north-west England

In view of the persistence of health inequalities and declines in leisure-sport participation over the life course, several quantitative investigations have explored the links between participation and other leisure activities, which have their foundations in childhood and youth, as a means of understanding adults’ health behaviours. This paper presents new qualitative evidence to examine the largely under-explored relationship between leisure-sport participation and health within the context of educational transitions among a sample of 30–35-year-olds in north-west England. Drawing on semi-structured interviews conducted with 19 participants between July and August 2009, the paper illuminates the differential impact that gender and social class had on sports participation, and other health-related behaviours (e.g. drinking and smoking), among different groups of adults during the inherently transitional life-stage of youth. The findings suggest that while significant, the length of time spent in education and the differential educational experiences recalled by adults cannot adequately explain the observed differences in health and leisure-sport participation. The major sources of difference, while associated with educational transitions, appeared to lie instead in the broader inequalities that characterized adults’ lives and it is argued that simply enhancing leisure-sport participation and individual lifestyle change, as a means of health promotion, is a futile endeavour that does little to tackle the socio-economic structural determinants of health. We conclude by suggesting that until this is recognized by government and those both inside and outside of the health and sport policy communities, stubborn differences in leisure-sport participation rates and health inequalities—that have their foundations in childhood and youth, but extend over the life course—are likely to remain intact, and the unequal lives people currently lead are likely to become even more unequal in the future.     

Canadian sport and state control: Toronto 1845–86

The popular noations that the ancient Greek athlete was more 'well rounded' than ours is wholly false, nor was there every any Greek ideal to achieve or pursue both intellectual and bodily excellence. Earlier Greeks judged excellence in either category invaluable, but an increasiingly vocal minority of intellectuals, apparently jealous of the athletes' great rewards, denigrated athletes and bodily achievement. Mind, they said, was superior to body. By later antiquity, some authors even asserted that athletes were as stupid as animals, and their achievements no greater. Christianity welcomed the philosophers' depreciation of the body, and mediaeval ascetism carried it to the extremes that de Coubertin and others called "hatred of the flesh." The latter part of the paper explains how the rebirth of athletics dealt with these matters, and how false notions of the Greeks entered popular belief.     

The governance of professional soccer: Five case studies – Algeria,China, England,France and Japan

Abstract

Although there has been a rapid growth in the globalisation of sport and its delivery to world markets, nevertheless there is a variety of models of sport-business whose characteristics are the product of local histories, local political and sporting cultures, local economic conditions and so on. This paper does not seek to deny the increasingly obvious impact of globalisation on professional sport, but rather it seeks to articulate the ways in which such global phenomena are locally mediated in professional soccer systems in five countries, to identify and to explain local responses to global pressures. The five examples include the oldest professional football system, that of England, and a second contrasting European system, France, together with three relatively recently established professional football systems in Japan a developed capitalist economy, Algeria, which is developing a post-socialist sports economy, and China which is experimenting in sport as in other areas with a ‘socialist market economy’. The resultant evolution of professional sporting systems represents distinctive configurations of stakeholders in what are in effect contrasting business models, and reflects a situation of ‘diminishing varieties and increasing contrasts’, in contrast to the claims made by Elias in relation to global cultural phenomena.     

‘Governmentality’ in the origins of European female PE and sport: the Spanish case study (1883–1936)

The purpose of the paper is twofold: (1) to contribute to the analysis of the origins of modern European female PE and sports from a power perspective, inspired by Foucault's work; and (2) to present a detailed analysis of female PE and sport in Spain (1883–1936) as a specific European case study. It is argued that these physical activities could be conceived in the Spanish case as part of a specific kind of ‘governmentality’ with a dual nature. On the one hand they represented disciplinary ‘technologies of power’ over the female body. Selected physical activities—dictated mainly from the hygienic-moral position of the Regeneracionistas (‘Regenerationists’)—were exerted as a kind of ‘bio-power’ for the control of the female population. On the other hand, such kind of activities (especially sports) represented certain ‘technologies of the self’ for middle and upper class women. Through participation in sports, women gained a more active and public role in the Spanish society of the era, obtaining some degree of autonomy in self-governance over their bodies and their lives.     

From processing efficiency to attentional control: a mechanistic account of the anxiety–performance relationship

The aim of this paper is to outline the development of Eysenck and Calvo's (1992) processing efficiency theory (PET) and to summarise research testing its predictions in the sporting domain. PET provides a mechanistic explanation for how anxiety may influence performance through its impact on attentional resources. The central tenet of PET is that as well as pre-empting resources in working memory, increased anxiety provides a motivational function, leading to the allocation of additional effort to attempt to maintain task performance. Research in sport settings has been supportive of the predictions of PET, adopting a range of measures of processing efficiency; including self-reported effort, secondary task performance and psychophysiological indices. Furthermore, cognitive sport psychologists have recently examined direct influences of anxiety on the efficiency of information processing via gaze behaviour analyses. These findings are particularly relevant in the light of a recent update and development of PET; attentional control theory (ACT; Eysenck, Derakshan, Santos, & Calvo, 2007). ACT purports that anxiety reduces attentional control by increasing the influence of the stimulus-driven attentional system at the cost of goal directed control. It is evident that ACT may provide a useful framework for examining the relationship between anxiety, attention and performance in sport skills.     

A coach’s political use of video-based feedback: a case study in elite-level academy soccer

This paper examines the video-based pedagogical practices of Terry (pseudonym), a head coach of a professional junior academy squad. Data were collected through 6 in-depth, semi-structured interviews and 10 field observations of Terry’s video-based coaching in situ. Three embracing categories were generated from the data. These demonstrated that Terry’s video-based coaching was far from apolitical. Rather, Terry strategically used performance analysis technologies to help fulfil various objectives and outcomes that he understood to be expected of him within the club environment. Kelchtermans’ micropolitical perspective, Callero’s work addressing role and Groom et al.’s grounded theory were primarily utilised to make sense of Terry’s perceptions and actions. The findings point to the value of developing contextually grounded understandings of coaches’ uses of video-based performance analysis technology. Doing so could better prepare coaches for this aspect of their coaching practice.     

A qualitative analysis of the factors determining the quality of relations between a novice physical education teacher and his students’ families: implications for the development of professional identity

The purposes of this study were: (a) to analyze the factors determining the quality of relationships between a novice physical education (PE) teacher and his students’ families and (b) understand the implications of these relationships for his professional identity. The data stemmed from detailed teacher’s diaries written by the participant throughout his first five years of teaching. The data analysis followed several rounds of cyclical inductive-deductive processes in order to identify and classify the patterns related to the aforementioned purposes. The results, presented in two sections, show two distinct sets of factors, which, respectively, had very different implications for the development of the teacher’s professional identity. On the one hand, in the first three years of teaching, there appeared 11 specific ‘struggle factors’ (6 socio-cultural and structural factors and 5 family prejudices toward PE) that threatened the teacher’s initial pedagogical passion and lead to a great deal of hesitation and discouragement on his part; on the other hand, in the fourth and fifth years, due to the teacher’s ongoing commitment and (self-)reflective practice, there emerged eight ‘success factors’ (one from the families and seven from the teacher) that transformed his previous discouragement into hope and self-confidence. Besides the detailed analysis of all these factors and their implications, some additional recommendations for PE teacher education programs and further research are provided.