This exciting new undergraduate textbook introduces the reader to the broad and complex relationship between sport, culture and society, and critically examines the key assumptions that we hold with regard to the nature of sport.

Dealing with different aspects of movement, sports and physical activity, this text examines the effects such activities has on our culture and the benefits of participation.

It is impossible to fully understand contemporary society and culture without acknowledging the place of sport. Sport is part of our social and cultural fabric, possessing a social and commercial power that makes it a potent force in the world, for good and for bad. Sport has helped to start wars and promote international reconciliation, while every government around the world commits public resources to sport because of its perceived benefits. From the bleachers to the boardroom, sport matters. Now available in a fully revised and updated new edition, this exciting, comprehensive and accessible textbook introduces the study of sport, culture and society. International in scope, the book explores the key social theories that shape our understanding of sport as a social phenomenon and critically examines many of the assumptions that underpin that understanding. Placing sport at the very heart of the analysis, and including vibrant sporting examples throughout, the book introduces the student to every core topic and emerging area in the study of sport and society, including: the history and politics of sport sport and globalization sport and the media sport, violence and crime sport, the body and health sport and the environment alternative sports and lifestyles sporting mega-events sport and development. Each chapter includes a wealth of useful features to assist the student, including chapter summaries, highlighted definitions of key terms, practical projects, revision questions, boxed case-studies and biographies, and guides to further reading, with additional teaching and learning resources available on a companion website. Sport, Culture and Society is the most broad-ranging and thoughtful introduction to the socio-cultural analysis of sport currently available and sets a new agenda for the discipline. It is essential reading for all students with an interest in sport. Visit the companion website at www.routledge.com/cw/jarvie.

This is a succinct and comprehensive account of the contemporary sociology of sport. It starts by tracing the key ‘moments’ in the transition from pre-modern to modern sport, giving detailed accounts of the athletic competition in the ancient games at Olympia; the genesis of modern track-and-field athletics in nineteenth-century England; and the reconstruction by de Coubertin and unfolding of the Olympic movement through the twentieth century. The second section analyses features of sport in detail: The links between exercise, sport and health, including a look at growing rates of obesity and of the role of drug use in society and sport The hyper-commodification of football in the 1990s Representations of sport in the media Sports iconography, with sociological portraits of Muhammad Ali and David Beckham The re-emergence of violence in sport The third section critically analyses the various theoretical approaches adopted by sociologists, and presents a distinctive new theoretical framework for understanding the changing role of sport in society in the era of global disorganized capitalism. This is key reading for students and researchers in sociology of sport and leisure, sport science and health.

Health and Elite Sport is the first book to critically examine the relationship between participation in high performance sport and health outcomes. Drawing on theory and empirical data from a wide range of disciplines, including sociology, developmental psychology, epidemiology, and physical education, the book explores the benefits and detriments of participation in elite sport for both individuals (athletes, coaches, spectators) and communities. Written by a team of leading international sport researchers, the book examines key issues including: Talent identification and young athletes Abuse in sport Positive youth development through sport Athlete health in periods of transition Health, sport and the family Health in professional sport The Olympics, Paralympics and public health Long term effects of participation in elite sport Highlighting the connections and contradictions between high performance sport and health, the book also discusses the clear and important implications for our socio-cultural, political and developmental understanding of sport. Health and Elite Sport is fascinating and important reading for all students and researchers with an interest in youth sport, sports development, sport policy, sports coaching, exercise and health, physical education, the sociology of sport, or the sociology of health.

This comprehensive collection examines the culture of sport and its relationship with various social institutions. The editors first provide a broad overview of the field and describe the ways in which the concept of sport as a meritocratic contest is undermined by the powerful social structures within which it is embedded. Sections focus on political economy, violence, the media, education, politics, fans and community, and the body. Primary readings from noted scholars in each section address current issues such as the presence of big-time sports in educational institutions; the effects of corporate media; race and class relations; professional athletes' ties to politics; and how sports alter perceptions and practices regarding beauty and health. In addition, entertaining and provocative essays from journalists supplement academic readings and spotlight key issues. Section introductions from the editors connect the readings to a theoretical framework that explores the perspectives of new institutionalism, cultural hegemony, social capital, and symbolic interaction and cultural construction. Providing a cohesive foundation for a wide range of readings, Sport, Power, and Society is a must-have resource for understanding the current issues and debates surrounding the interactions of sport and society.

What does it mean when a hit that knocks an American football player unconscious is cheered by spectators? What are the consequences of such violence for the participants of this sport and for the entertainment culture in which it exists? This book brings together scholars and sport commentators to examine the relationship between American football, violence and the larger relations of power within contemporary society. From high school and college to the NFL, Football, Culture, and Power analyses the social, political and cultural imprint of America’s national pastime. The NFL’s participation in and production of hegemonic masculinity, alongside its practices of racism, sexism, heterosexism and ableism, provokes us to think deeply about the historical and contemporary systems of violence we are invested in and entertained by. This social scientific analysis of American football considers both the positive and negative power of the game, generating discussion and calling for accountability. It is fascinating reading for all students and scholars of sports studies with an interest in American football and the wider social impact of sport. Chapter 14 of this book is freely available as a downloadable Open Access PDF at http://www.taylorfrancis.com under a Creative Commons Attribution-Non Commercial-No Derivatives (CC-BY-NC-ND) 4.0 license.

This innovative and timely volume moves beyond existing operational and pragmatic approaches to events studies by exploring sports events as social, cultural, political and mediatised phenomena. As the study of this area is developing there is now a need for critical and theoretically informed debate regarding conceptualisation, significance and roles. This edited collection explores the core themes of consumption, media technologies, representation, identities and culture to offer new insight into how sports events contribute to generation of individual and shared meaning over personal, community and national identities as well as the associated issues of conflict, resistance and power. Chapters promote a critical (re)evaluation of emerging empirical research from a diverse range of sports events and locations from the international to local level. A multi-disciplinary approach is taken with contributions from areas including sports studies, media studies, sociology, cultural studies, communications, politics, tourism and gender studies. Written by leading academics in the area, this thorough exploration of the contested relationship between sports events, society and culture will be of interest to students, academics and researchers in Events, Sport, Tourism and Sociology.

This interdisciplinary text examines the sports-Christianity interface from Protestant and Catholic perspectives. In addition to a "systematic review of literature," field-pioneering contributors such as Michael Novak, Shirl Hoffman, Joseph Price and Robert Higgs address a wide range of topics from the sporting world, including biblical athletic metaphors, disability, evangelism, professionalism and celebrity, humility and pride, genetic enhancement technologies, stereotypes, sport as art and British and American historical analyses of sport and Christianity. Insightful chapters from Scott Kretchmar, one of the world’s leading philosophers of sport, and Father Kevin Lixey, the head of the Vatican’s ‘Church and Sport’ office (2004-), add further depth and breadth to this book, making it accessible and interesting to academic and practitioner audiences alike. Within the context of this relatively new and rapidly expanding area of inquiry, this collection provides a unique and important addition to the current literature for both undergraduate and postgraduate students, and serves as a point of reference for scholars of theology and religious studies, psychology, health studies, ethics and sports studies. The book may also be of interest to physical educators and sports coaches who wish to adopt a more "holistic" and ethical approach to their work. As modern sport is often intertwined with commercial and political agendas, this book offers an important corrective to the "win-at-all-costs" culture of modern sport, which cannot be fully understood through secular ethical inquiry.