What is the Sociology of Sport?

The sociology of sport is a sub-discipline of sociology which looks at the relationship between sport and society. Sport is a highly significant area of life - sport doesn't exist in a vacuum nor is it some form of separate entity from life. Sport is created and sustained by members of societies. Sport is an important area of many people's lives, demonstrated by the time and money spent on sports. For instance, consider the amount of attention given to sports by the mass media. We can participate in sport in many different ways, not just as competitors, we may be spectators, officials etc.

These are the sort of questions sociologists ask when considering sport:

Why is sport important and has it always been so? Do sports stay the same and , if not, are changes related to changes in society at large? Why do people enjoy watching sport?

Because sport is part of society let's consider some of the relationships between sport and other social institutions. This is only a quick summary to demonstrate the significance of sport in the modern world. I have provided a bibliography of books which I found helpful when taking a more in-depth insight into the sociology of sport.

Sport and the Economy: the input and output of money due to sport and sports related goods have a significant effect on both local and national economies. Many people's work is related to sport, either directly or indirectly. Many aspects of sport are organized as commercial enterprises. Sports may be used as part of advertising campaigns and many businesses sponsor sports or competitors.

Sport and Politics: two demonstrations of the link between sport and politics are:

1 - the affect on sports of direct and indirect rules and laws the government sets. Whilst sports have a relatively high level of self-rule they must stay within the bounds of civil law; for example, the use of physical violence in contact sports may be deemed to break the law but are these boundaries clear when related to sports?

Title IX in the USA demonstrates how federal government ensures equal opportunities in school sports participation for women.

2 - sports can be used as a political tool. Many politicians have been quick to seize on the powerful influence of being linked with sport, especially when linked with the generation of feelings of local and national pride. On an international level, sport may be used as a publicity tool for a country's ideologies; this is demonstrated by the strong emphasis placed on sporting competition between the USA and Soviet Union during the Cold War as 'Capitalism vs. Communism'. Sport has been used to demonstrate political stances, for instance the sporting boycott of Apartheid South Africa.

Sport and Culture: sport is one way people can communicate their perception of their own identity and the groups they belong to in society. Many sports are deemed to represent certain class cultures. Often sport can be used to maintain and communicate cultural identity via a medium which crosses cultural boundaries.

Sport and Religion: Some religious institutions have incorporated sport into their activities. People's religious beliefs may affect their sports participation, for example, dress codes. It has also been noted there are a number of 'quasi-religious' elements to sport - people may refer to football pitches as 'sacred' turf.