Since 1990, Britain has seen a period of unprecedented public investment in, and political commitment to, sport. This book provides an analysis that examines sport policy as a field of government and discusses how the various sectors have been affected by government and the competition for public resources.

This is a cutting-edge text which responds to the increasing importance of sport policy and its relation to public investment.

This lively and deeply researched history - the first of its kind - goes beyond the great names and moments to explain how British sport has changed since 1800, and what it has meant to ordinary people. It shows how the way we play reflects not just our lives as citizens of a predominantlyurban and industrial world, but what is especially distinctive about British sport. Innovators in abandoning traditional, often brutal sports, and in establishing a code of `fair play', the British were also pioneers in popular sports and in the promotion of organized spectator events.Modern media coverage of sport, gambling, violence and attitudes towards it, nationalism, and the role of sport in sustaining male identity are also explored, and the book is rich in illuminating and entertaining anecdotes, which it combines with a serious historical understanding of a fascinatingsubject.

This book explores the organisation and structure of sport in and beyond Europe. Drawing upon up-to-date data, the collection’s main focus lies on the relationship between public sport policy structures and sport (con)federations. The authors present thirteen country-specific contexts wherein sport policy systems are embedded. This evidence provides in-depth descriptions and analyses within a solid academic and theoretical framework. This volume will be of interest to students and scholars of Sociology of Sport, Sport Management and Sport Policy.

Kevin Jefferys provides the first comprehensive historical account of the greatly increased interaction between sport and politics in Britain since World War Two. Jefferys sets sport within the changing socio-political context and balances an appreciation of continuity and change from the London Olympics of 1948 to those of 2012.

Sport Policy and Development introduces the key themes in sport and social policy and provides students with a base for understanding the process of social policy creation more generally. Bringing a distinctively sociological perspective to the subject, the text provides a comprehensive analysis of the ways in which pro-sport policies are thought to influence the community and the individual.

In this volume, which was originally published in 1989, nine distinguished historians look at the origins, growth and organisation of the major mass-participation sports in Britain. They combine academic expertise with the enthusiasm of the true sports devotee in considering such vital issues as the social background of players and spectators, gambling, public popularity, media coverage and the impact of television, professionalisation and of course the age-old divide between 'gentlemen' and 'players'. Richly illustrated with rarely seen period photographs, the ten essays combine academic research with entertaining anecdotal evidence derived from the folklore of each game. Of interest both to the student of modern British history and serious sports fans everywhere Sport in Britain: A Social History is a fascinating and wide-ranging contribution to its subject.

The London Olympics of 2012 acted as a focal point for an examination of UK sport policy. Individual chapters from leading specialists in their fields focus upon the central components of the UK?s ?model? of sport - for example elite, school and community sport and talent ID policies - and discuss what kind of ?legacy? 2012 is likely to leave on the sports landscape in years to come. The concept ?legacy? is a common theme running through all contributions which themselves stem from a wide variety of academic disciplines and sub-disciplines, including sport psychology, political science, sports studies, cultural studies and sociology. A wide range of topics and organisations are covered throughout the volume, including coaching, talent ID, school sports partnerships, PE and youth sport, participation in sport, the IOC and the Olympic Charter, the Olympic Movement and Islamic Culture and, finally, issues of regeneration through sports mega-events. This book was published as a special issue of the International Journal of Sport Policy.

Examines the emergence, development and status of an elite sport development policy in swimming, track and field, and sailing in Australia, Canada and the UK.

Sport, Policy and Politics is a genuinely comparative analysis of sport policy-making in five countries - Australia, Canada, Ireland, the United Kingdom and North America. Some of the issues raised in this book include: * the process of sport policy-making * the administrative framework for sport: the responsibilities of central or federal governments, state governments and local authorities * the division of responsibility between different levels of government * how policy-making has addressed the topical problems of drug abuse in athletes, and the provision of sport and physical education in schools.