Search results

Sports betting has become more prevalent, visible and socially accepted in Western liberal societies than ever before. This normalisation of gambling on sports has been fuelled by deregulation, the omnipresence of advertising and the growing dependency of elite sports on sponsorship revenue streams from the gambling industry. That said, much remains to be uncovered about the mechanisms through which this normalisation of gambling occurs in sports. This chapter focuses on the role of sports clubs in Belgium and the Netherlands, drawing on empirical insights from two related studies that examine the oft-neglected salience of integrity as a key factor shaping gambling-related policy and practice at the organisational level. This sets the stage for a critical research agenda that can support the denormalisation of gambling, and the deconstruction of dominant discourses that frame sports betting as a fun, risk-free social practice.

Purpose: Due to COVID-19, tourism to Tokyo Olympic is totally banned and sports enthusiasts are not allowed to view any sport event.

Need of the study: The need of this chapter is to explore Twitter content and analyse its sentiments towards the mega sporting event #Tokyo2020 Olympic.

Methodology: This research has adopted the behaviour of players and sport fans to analyse their Twitter messages using netnographic approach. Sample of 7,475 tweets of #Tokyo2020 an official Twitter online Olympic campaign was collected, and these tweets were categorised with frequency analysis, sentiment analysis, and context analysis using NVivo.

Findings: Results highlighted that majority of tweets are positive towards Tokyo Olympic even in COVID-19 scenario. Findings of the study showed that Tokyo Olympic had favourable emotions, sporting sprit, positive state of energy, and players’ lifestyles.

Practical implications: This research explored the dynamics of engagement practices and can be extended to other fields of study and is useful to sports authorities to strategize their forthcoming sporting events.

Purpose – The aim of the chapter is to understand why, in a country that has such strict government alcohol policies, sport is allowed – and allows itself – to be associated with, and source income from, alcohol consumption.

Design/methodology/approach – The analysis builds on previous research on the government–sport relationship in Sweden, and on documents produced by the government and sport.

Findings – The chapter shows how a close and long-standing relationship between the government and sport has created a ‘drinking problem’ for sport, and that this is nurtured by the government through its actions vis-à-vis sport in matters related to alcohol. These actions are at odds with the overall aim of Swedish alcohol policy, and distinctive from the government's actions vis-à-vis actors outside the realm of sport but aligned with government sport policy and the long-standing government–sport relationship. In that sense, the association between sport and alcohol has less to do with alcohol than with the mutual dependence between the government and sport, and with both parties' interest in maintaining common agreements and good faith. In addition to providing these tentative explanations, it is suggested that ‘the politics of forwarding’ is one of the systemic effects that follow from the particularities of the Swedish government-sport-alcohol nexus.

Research limitations/implications – Research from other contexts is needed as the chapter is only a first tentative step in uncovering the government's role in the sport–alcohol link in countries with sport systems that are characterized by a combination of extensive public support to sport and an autonomous member-based sport system.

Purpose – To offer a thought-provoking reflection of my experiences ‘in the field’ at alcohol-infused sporting events. This chapter, in effect, is a piece of qualitative research on the ‘doing’ of quantitative survey research. This chapter provides important insights into the politics of collecting and representing data and the social boundaries within which those data are collected.

Design/methodology/approach – Between September 2011 and February 2012, I embarked on data collection for a research project that investigated the culture of alcohol promotion and consumption at major sport events in New Zealand. Specifically, I was interested in examining the public spaces where alcohol was promoted and where people consumed alcohol as part of the overall entertainment experience of sport mega-events. The discussion in this chapter presents an overview of the politics and performances of in-field research.

Findings – I discuss particular cultural, conceptual, methodological and ethical quandaries that coincide with undertaking such research. In doing so, I consider the situational standpoint, positional paradox and behavioural bind of my research experience.

Research Implications – This chapter contributes to the on-going scholarly dialogue that details the complexities of research management and strategies for studies exploring the sport-alcohol nexus, which will be of benefit to current and future qualitative researchers in their preparation to conduct fieldwork about sport and alcohol.

Limitations – The reflections offer details about the culture at specific events and scholars should be cautious of the extent to which they can be generalized from one alcohol-infused sport event to the next.