Suchergebnisse

A key feature of government policy in the last 30 years is the use of sport programmes as a vehicle for social change aiming to benefit and improve the lives of marginalized and vulnerable members of society. Sports policy-makers and practitioners have sought to use the 'power of sport' through sport-based intervention programmes to tackle key social issues. The Homeless World Cup is an example of this, comprising a football tournament held annually since 2003 aiming to re-engage marginalized, vulnerable and socially excluded homeless people. This article focuses on a group of young male homeless players from a United Kingdom squad that attended the inaugural Homeless World Cup. Drawing upon observations and interview material, the findings centre on the benefits of engagement in the programme but also the challenges and difficulties specific to the circumstances surrounding this group of players. The article concludes with a preliminary assessment of the appropriateness of the HWC as a mechanism for assisting homeless people to overcome the multi-faceted and complex issues they face.

The global migration of footballers to and within the top professional leagues in Europe has greatly accelerated in the last decade. Commercial interests in this "football business" have also grown prodigiously and the English leagues, especially the Premier League, have experienced an associated and pronounced increase in foreign player migration. The Premier League, supported by intensive commercial investment, has placed England on the career map of some top global stars. The globalization of football and its labor migrants can only be considered as part of a multifaceted and multidirectional process. This paper provides a model for understanding the globalization of football and the movement of its labor, but also probes beneath this model, drawing on findings from interview-based interpretative research conducted with foreign professional players in England (n = 22). A typology based on player experiences is established, explaining some of the key experiential dimensions of sports labor migration.

The potential value of sport as a vehicle through which urban regeneration and social renewal policy can be delivered has been extensively examined. However, there are an increasing number of initiatives aiming to use sports-based programmes as a way to address worklessness and social exclusion amongst young people which have received less attention. This paper provides a critical comparative analysis of two such programmes, one based in Rotterdam, the Netherlands, and the other in Stoke-on-Trent in the UK. Using qualitative data collected from participants, staff and other stakeholders, the paper details the nature and perceived merits of the programmes before considering the limitations and constraints of employability initiatives using sport. The paper concludes by suggesting that a fundamental shift in policy discourse is required for such programmes to be able to achieve sustainable positive outcomes for workless young people with complex problems and needs.

1. Introduction -- 2. Social exclusion in the global age -- 3. Sport and social exclusion in public policy -- 4. Mechanisms of social exclusion in sport -- 5. Using sport to tackle social exclusion in the Global North -- 6. Sport for development in the Global South -- 7. Engaging socially excluded young people in sports programs -- 8. Building inclusive sports communities -- 9. Looking back, looking forward : reflections on sport and social exclusion in global society.

The use of football programs as a vehicle for social change has increased exponentially in recent decades. This article utilizes Goffman's sociology as a framework to approach the Homeless World Cup (HWC). Firstly, we examine how the participants interviewed refer to their journeys and how, throughout the HWC's preparation, they were able to positively reconfigure their self-presentation. Secondly, we consider the frame of repeated defeats for participants whose expectations of success within this tournament were not fulfilled, reinforcing previously held feelings of stigma. Thirdly, the symbolic distance between winning and losing teams is discussed. Finally, we propose some reflections about the tournament's format in order to remove, or at least reduce, negative experiences.

In the wake of the Taliban's return to power in Afghanistan and its ban on women's sport, hundreds of Afghan athletes, including several Olympians, decided to flee the country rather than give up their sports and see their rights curtailed. This paper explores how Afghan women now living in Australia navigate agency and aspirations on and off the soccer field within the context of high levels of uncertainty, instability, and constraint. Drawing on qualitative interviews with 18 participants, the results demonstrate how soccer offers an insightful microcosm of settlement as a continuation of a fraught journey. The findings reveal both the multi-layered constraints the women experienced and how they navigated these constraints with creativity, resourcefulness, and aspiration for the future.

Diversity and equality are key issues confronting sport. This article draws on findings from qualitative research carried out in Australia to critically examine how diversity is understood and valued in community sport. The findings suggest that there is a discrepancy between the policy objectives of government and sport organizations and the way in which diversity is understood and responded to in practice. Diversity management is not being adopted widely among local sports clubs. The idea of a moral imperative to cater to people with diverse backgrounds and abilities is largely absent; rather, the dominant discourse is underpinned by a business rationale which interprets diversity in terms of benefits and costs to the organization. This business-driven approach is often detrimental to the social policy objective of ensuring equitable outcomes in sport. A fundamental reconsideration of the rationale and practice of managing diversity in sport is therefore necessary.

This study employs a spatial analysis to critically examine gender relations within an Australian football and netball community sports club that has sought to address gender inequity and promote the participation of women across the club. Notable changes included increased female representation in the club's decision-making structures, growing numbers of female members, and the establishment of a women's and girls' football section. Using an in-depth case study that combined interviews and observations over a 6-month period, we investigated the impact these changes have had on transforming gender relations and in challenging perceptions of the club as a privileged space for its male members. The study utilized spatial and feminist theory to illustrate that, despite the club's efforts to change gender relations, men who are able to embody dominant forms of masculinity (i.e., high ability and able-bodied) continue to be privileged within the club environment. The article highlights the importance of spatial analysis in illuminating the ways in which various micro-level practices preserve dominant gender relations within community sports. The findings reinforce that although a greater number of women and girls are participating in community sport, this alone is not significantly reshaping gender relations. Policies seeking to promote gender equity in sport need to enforce changes in club environments in addition to focusing on increasing women's participation.

Diversity is a key term used in a range of public and private organizations to describe institutional goals, values and practices. Sport is a prominent social institution where the language of diversity is frequently and positively used; yet, this rhetoric does not necessarily translate into actual practice within sport organizations. This paper critically examines diversity work in community sports clubs. Drawing upon qualitative research at 31 amateur sports clubs in Australia, the findings show that diversity work in community sport organizations is often haphazard and accidental, rather than a strategic response or adaptation to policy. This paper concludes that while individual champions are critical to the promotion of diversity, persistent tensions and resistance arise when they seek to translate the language of diversity into institutional practice and culture change.