UK Sport Research Articles

Strategies and Media Impact in Premier League

This paper delves into the media and commercial strategies of top UK sports events, particularly focusing on the Premier League. It will try to study how exactly new projects in the sale of media rights, brand building, digitalization, and entering the foreign market have turned them into the world brands. Media is pivotal in promoting visibility, building brand personas, creating audience engagement and access to faraway markets, this is what it underlines. It also discusses how the Premier League has implemented innovative technologies like big data and AI to offer personalized content and effective marketing to hold on to the status of one of the most powerful football leagues in the world. It is concluded that the sport industry is in need of constant innovation and adoption of digitization trends in order to maintain its competitiveness on a global scale.

Online Abuse, Emotion Work and Sports Journalism

ABSTRACT This article generates new insights into the changing profession of journalism. Empirically, we present the findings of 21 interviews with journalists working in the Irish and UK sports beats on their experiences of online abuse. Conceptually, we address the under-theorising of emotions in journalism by extending the utility and entanglement of emotion work and emotional labour. In doing so, we posit future lines of theoretical enquiry about individual and social regulation. Several key discoveries are presented. First, sports journalism is a distinctive profession because significant authentic emotional work is undertaken. This is only accentuated when online abuse occurs. Journalists are deeply affected by this abuse, personally and professionally. Second, online abuse towards sports journalists is now so ubiquitous as to be habitually accepted, and it has obscured the distinction between public and private spaces. Third, in response, sports journalists have been compelled to develop their own emotional strategies, including self-censorship, to cope with and manage online abuse. The findings presented here also pose practical and existential questions about the sustainability of the profession, especially in the absence of formal institutional supports or even an informal code of practice about how to cope with and respond to online abuse.

Current Situation and Subjects in the Acquisition of Broadcasting Rights of UK Sports by OTT Service Providers

Current Situation and Subjects in the Acquisition of Broadcasting Rights of UK Sports by OTT Service Providers

The role of the analyst: comparative analysis of applied performance analyst job advertisements in the UK and Ireland (2021-2022)

ABSTRACT This study examined the key roles, responsibilities, and skills sought when advertising for the recruitment of Applied Performance Analysts (APAs) in UK and Irish professional sports settings. Deductive and inductive content analysis of the job descriptions and personal specifications of 130 job advertisements from 2021 to 2022 across the entire APA spectrum was undertaken. This encompassed 21 different specific role titles. Despite unified advertisement formats, noticeable variations emerged regarding length and content focus, regardless of First-team or Academy positions. The findings revealed a greater focus on Sports Performance Analysis (SPA), sports, and technical expertise coupled with professional behaviours in APA advertisements, with less priority shown to relationship-building skills. First-team positions particularly requested more skill-specific analysis expertise. Academy APAs were expected to focus on collecting data, facilitating feedback, in addition to creating and approving infrastructure for various age groups. Comparatively, First-team roles involved more complex data analysis tasks, including interrogating data, trend identification, and stakeholder reporting. The analysis not only highlights role discrepancies but also serves as a potential framework for employers when creating job advertisements, assists applicants in identifying the key skills to highlight, and informs curriculum and training programmes to cover the entire APA spectrum.

The blurred line in elite sport: exploring UK media reporting of bullying and banter

ABSTRACT In recent years there has been an increasing interest in the concepts of bullying and banter within both sport research and media reporting. However, at present, research has not explored reports of bullying and banter within the UK sport media This is a potential omission, as the media may provide important conceptual information about bullying and banter to those outside of the academic domain. Therefore, the present study sought to understand how banter and bullying are framed by the UK sport media and how these concepts have been distinguished from one another. Guided by a pragmatist approach, 85 print and broadcast media articles were analysed from The Times, The Telegraph, Daily Mail, The Sun, The Guardian, British Broadcasting Company (BBC) and Sky Sports News (SNN). Through an abductive thematic analysis, the findings highlighted several themes around the media’s view of bullying. The media differentiated bullying and banter through the tipping point between these concepts and a misinterpretation of jokes and banter. The present study contributed to the current research on bullying and banter by analysing the media’s perspectives of the concepts. Overall, the findings outline the contemporary understanding of bullying in sport, whilst highlighting the significant influence the media has in shaping the discussion around banter in this context.

A review of the nutritional guidance for athletes to prevent eating disorders.

Since the 1980s eating disorders (ED) have gained increasing prevalence, with athletes proving to be at a higher risk compared to non-athletes. Eating disorders can significantly impact the health and performance of an athlete, however, certain guidelines are in place for prevention, treatment and management. NICE and UK Sport were two guidelines that were identified as being referenced within the UK. This paper aimed to evaluate their utility and establish whether modifications are required to prevent ED within athletic populations. A checklist was created based on peer-reviewed recommendations and used in conjunction with conceptualised case studies based on information sourced from proposed key informant interviews. Whilst both guidelines are extensive in the identification of symptoms associated with ED, they lack recognised recommended screening methods. Furthermore, although both contain some form of validated treatment, NICE recommends cognitive behavioural therapy despite acknowledging the lack of evidence supporting its beneficial application. In contrast to recommendations regarding physical therapy, NICE also states to avoid certain treatments, such as yoga, despite beneficial evidence of its treatment/rehabilitation for ED. When applied to case studies, both guidelines demonstrated the need for refinement and improvement in recommendations relating to weight loss and screening methods. To form an accurate critique of the guidelines, an assessment of their applicability and suitability in the prevention, treatment and management of ED in a practical sporting environment involving consenting participants is required.

What do we mean when we say ‘sport’?

ABSTRACT This article examines the evolving historiography of ‘sport’ vis-à-vis the British Society of Sports History (BSSH), as per fluid and shifting definitions of what the term ‘sport’ means. It begins by discussing broad themes within the previous historiography of UK sport. Afterwards, it roughly quantifies the content of articles the BSSH’s journal The Sports Historian/Sport in History during the period 1993–2021, with an emphasis on sporting forms and emerging trends. Finally, the author provides a similar discussion of the topics of conference papers at annual meetings of the BSSH during the period 2011–21. Throughout this article, the author, Chair of the Society from 2017 to 2019, attempts to provide some causal explanations for why certain sporting forms are popular points of discussion, how others are pushing the envelope of the term ‘sport’, and issues therein.

Coaches’ Immigration to the United Kingdom: What do Foreign and Native Coaches think about migration

Coaches’ migration has received limited attention. It is important to explore their migration experiences and how native coaches perceive coaches’ migration because they might have different views on this topic. The current research aims to investigate a) the perceptions of migrant coaches regarding their experiences in a host country and b) the perceptions of native coaches regarding coaches’ migration to the UK. A qualitative thematic analysis was adopted to analyse the data and MAXQDA 11 software was used to facilitate this process. In total, 15 participants residing in the UK were invited to participate through convenience sampling. An online open-ended survey was completed by ten immigrant coaches (six females, four males) with ages ranging from 19 to 44 years (mean = 30.7; SD = 9.04), and interviews were conducted with five British native coaches (four males and one female) with ages ranging from 20 to 40 years (mean = 30.5; SD = 9.15). We found that coaches’ transnational recruitment was mainly influenced by social networks. Immigrant coaches were motivated to migrate to the UK to work full-time in their sport. They reported some language and communication challenges in their adaptation and suggested training for migration purposes would have been useful. UK-native coaches defined coaches’ immigration as positive for the UK sports development and the exchange of knowledge and skills in the sport. However, they also identified barriers imposed on immigrant coaches such as other coaches’ negative views about immigration and protectionist measures from the UK sports federations.

Listening to children's voices in UK sports clubs: A Foucauldian analysis

AbstractOrganisations funded by Sport England or UK Sport must work towards achieving standards for safeguarding and protecting children in sport as set by the National Society for the Prevention of Cruelty to Children's Child Protection in Sport Unit (CPSU) and encourage a culture of listening to children. The present research was commissioned by the NSPCC CPSU to understand the practices of UK sports clubs regarding this objective. An electronic questionnaire was distributed through the national governing bodies of sport working with the CPSU. Some 64 clubs/squads representing 6,000+ juniors (under 18 years) responded. Quantitative data were analysed using simple statistics and qualitative data were themed utilising Foucault's theory of power and following Braun and Clark's six‐phase guide. Discourse, hierarchical judgement and docility were considered with reference to formal management and cultural environments. Semantic and latent themes were explored. The themes identified were: expectation awareness, reframing voice and preserving discourse. Clubs recognise the value of listening to children. However, existing power relations valorise adult knowledge fields over the experiences of juniors. Technology could provide an effective solution as it is remote, potentially anonymous and culturally accessible. As power is a productive force, problematisation of organisational culture could centralise children's voices and limit/prevent abuse.

On the outside looking in: Trans identity experiences in and through UK sport participation

Using interpretative phenomenological analysis, this study utilised semi-structured interviews with five trans participants in sport to explore their lived experiences of ‘inclusive’ sport participation. The potential role for sport psychologists in promoting and supporting trans sports participants’ overall sense of perceived inclusion and belonging was also considered. Analysis revealed three core themes: the experience of personal acceptance of identity and social inclusion, the ‘internal’ battle between identity and expression, and the changing role that sport played during gender affirmation as a facilitative and or debilitative coping resource. The findings indicate areas in which sport psychologists can better support and enhance the gender affirmation experience of trans participants in sport by improving feelings of inclusiveness (social support), a sense of acceptance and promoting overall mental wellbeing. This research is particularly useful for practitioners, coaches and other athletes for understanding the supportive role sport can play throughout the gender affirmation process.

Female Sports Participation, Gender Identity and the British 2010 Equality Act

ABSTRACT The inclusion of girls and women in sport at all levels depends on single sex categories for most sports from puberty onwards, because of the biological differences between the sexes. Most sport is, by definition, competitive; involving invasion games, teams, leagues, races, competitions and sometimes rankings, from foundation to excellence. Girls and women are underrepresented, particularly in traditional sport, as recognised by the UK Sports Councils and most governing bodies of sport. This paper uses feminist philosophy: Lister on androcentric citizenship, and Fraser on justice as balance, framing, recognition, representation and redistribution. It investigates the impact on the inclusion of girls and women, of eligibility policies adopting ‘self-identification of gender’ guidelines for the inclusion of transgender people in sport, at participation rather than elite levels. It explores fairness and equality as incorporated in law in the 2010 Equality Act in Britain, and contributes to ‘equality evidence’ available to the UK Sports Councils and GBS. These bodies are charged with developing fair and inclusive evidence-based eligibility criteria, in sports participation settings, for both girls and women, and transgender people.

Clinical patterns, recovery time and prolonged impact of COVID-19 illness in international athletes: the UK experience

ObjectivesTo report COVID-19 illness pattern, symptom duration and time loss in UK elite athletes.MethodsObservational, clinical and database review of athletes with symptomatic COVID-19 illness managed within the UK Sports Institutes....

Theorising organisational resilience for sport management research and practice

ABSTRACT Purpose/Rationale: Helping individuals and teams achieve their goals by being resilient is an established research field in sport. How sport organisations can be resilient in adversity is comparatively neglected, so the purpose is to provide firm foundations for conceptualising organisational resilience in sport management. Research question: “How can organisational resilience best be theorised for sport management research and practice?” Design/Methodology/Approach: From a critique of the resilience literature, a new Framework for Organisational Resilience Management (FfORM) is developed, based on the theory of organisational resource conversion and the separation of normative and descriptive levels. The FfORM is applied to sport management contexts, including the resilience of National Governing Bodies of Sport (NGBs) to reductions in UK Sport funding. Results and Findings: Organisational resilience is conceptualised as a means to an end, to achieve externally generated goals, emphasising its dynamic, temporal nature. The FfORM illuminates the challenges for NGBs in developing organisational resilience because of trade-offs in the actions they take. Practical implications: As well as being an evaluation tool, the FfORM will be of utility to sport organisations addressing the unprecedented challenges arising from COVID-19. Research contribution: Development of theory on organisational resilience, for use in both sport and other contexts.

Exploring Mental Health and Illness in the UK Sports Coaching Workforce

There is growing international concern about the mental health of those who work in sport, including coaches. However, we currently know little about the prevalence of mental illness and the experience of mental health among coaches, and their perceptions and use of workplace mental health support services. Little is also known about coaches’ disclosure of mental illness to, and seeking help from, work colleagues. We explore these issues using data from 202 coaches who responded to the first United Kingdom survey of mental health in the sport and physical activity workforce. In total, 55% of coaches reported having ever experienced a mental illness, and 44% currently did, with coaches in grassroots/community settings being most likely to experience mental illness. Depression and anxiety were the most commonly reported conditions and many coaches preferred to access mental health support outside of the organisation for whom they worked or volunteered, with decisions to seek help from others in the workplace being shaped by complex organisational and personal considerations. The findings suggest there is an important public health challenge which needs to be met among coaches, so that we can better address a question of fundamental importance: ‘who is looking after the people looking after the people’?

‘We are the vocal minority’: The Safe Standing movement and breaking down the state in English football

Lord Justice Taylor’s final report into the Hillsborough stadium disaster recommended that all Premier League and Championship football grounds in England and Wales should become all-seated and that football supporters would eventually become ‘accustomed and educated to sitting’. Thirty years later, thousands of fans continue to stand at matches but in areas not designed for them to do so. This ritual has become a source of conflict between clubs, supporters and official safety bodies. In 2018, the UK Sports Minister claimed that despite this problem, there remained no desire amongst top clubs to change the all-seating policy and that it was only a ‘vocal minority’ who wanted to see the permanent return of standing in English football. However, supporters, networked through the national Football Supporters Association, had been actively mobilizing a social movement against the legislation for over 20 years. In this article, I use relational sociology to analyse empirical snapshots of the latest phase of this movement, ‘Safe Standing’, to show how the switching and cooperation of supporter networks and their tactics were successful in breaking down the state to create new political opportunities. In doing so, the article reveals the key characteristics of safe standing, including conflict, organizational form and intersubjective motivations, to represent the collective – but also often complex and contradictory – responses to the neoliberal political economy which English football, and society more broadly, has inhabited over the past 30 years.

A new model of third generation artificial turf degradation, maintenance interventions and benefits

High performing and safe outdoor third generation (3G) artificial turf (AT) fields demand high quality initial design and construction coupled with a comprehensive maintenance aftercare regime. However, in many cases maintenance of AT fields suffers from either a low-cost inexpert approach, or a one-size-fits-all generic approach based on general guidance with little to no evidence of effectiveness. Little previous research has addressed fundamental questions regarding how 3G AT systems degrade or have provided evidence of the effectiveness of maintenance interventions. Maintenance techniques currently utilised can be grouped into four separate categories (grooming, cleaning, decompaction and infill top-ups). The maintenance tools and processes for each category have been developed empirically through experience, mainly in response to qualitative observations with little quantitative evidence. This paper reports on a unique body of quantitative evidence of specific effects of maintenance interventions, on third generation AT surfaces (3G), collected over the past several years in collaboration with a major UK sports surface maintenance contractor. In addition, the data contributes new and robust evidence of the rate at which 3G surfaces can ‘lose’ quantities of performance infill corroborated by the rate at which fields were topped up to maintain appropriate infill depths. A new quantified pitch degradation and maintenance benefits model is presented explaining 3G AT system degradation factors and mechanisms, their links to changes in system performance and the magnitudes of change effected by specific maintenance techniques. The new model is of direct benefit to both researchers and practitioners impacting on future best practice for assessing and maintaining the safety and performance of 3G AT.

A Thematic Analysis of Sports Bettors\u2019 Perceptions of Sports Betting Marketing Strategies in the UK

In the UK and other countries in the world, the volume of gambling advertisements is increasing, as is the popularity of online sports betting. While there is increasing research examining the content of such advertising, there is little research examining what gamblers themselves think about such advertising. Consequently, the aim of the present study was to firstly, explore the attitudes and opinions of sports bettors in response to marketing techniques used by the gambling industry and secondly, explore the perceived impact advertising has on their sports betting behavior. Semi-structured interviews were conducted with a sample of 19 UK sports bettors aged between 21 and 32 years old. Thematic analysis (TA) was used to analyze the transcripts. The analysis identified three main themes: (i) “temptation to gamble,” (ii) “promotion characteristics of gambling,” and (iii) “regulating gambling advertising.” Each theme consisted of two or three subthemes that illustrated the underlying factors that were perceived to be important aspects that contributed to the opinions and attitudes towards the advertising. Findings indicate that specific inducements including enhanced odds and “request-a-bet” promotions were perceived to increase feelings of control and reduce feelings of risk, in some cases resulting in the placing of impulsive bets. According to the participants, social media marketing was found to be intrusive and the frequency of gambling advertising contributed to the normalization of betting. The present study highlights the need for further research into the efficacy of current advertising regulations in the UK, with the end goal of minimizing gambling-related harm.

Governance in Indian cricket: Examining the Board of Control for Cricket in India through the good governance framework

The Board of Control for Cricket in India (BCCI) is one of the biggest, wealthiest and most influential sport governing bodies in the world. The BCCI has overseen traditional Test cricket in India since 1928. In 2008, the Indian cricket landscape shifted with the development of the Indian Premier League (IPL), a Tweny20 cricket league that has exploded in popularity since its launch. The BCCI also governs over the IPL, which generates extensive income and has raised the profile of Indian cricket around the world. However, recent controversies and corruption scandals have brought increasing scrutiny to the BCCI. In this study, the good governance framework from UK sport is applied to examine the BCCI. The good governance framework is used to examine five elements of the BCCI: structure, people, communication, standards and conduct, and policies and process. Through interviews with expert journalists and researchers (n = 6), it is clear that the BCCI needs to make significant reforms to better align with good governance principles. Namely, the BCCI must address concerns over transparency, accountability, managing conflicts of interests, structural problems and revise their policies and processes. On the other hand, participants applauded the BCCI’s contributions to enhancing cricket globally.

UK Sport organizational evolution: governance aspects, Olympic and Paralympic Games influence and insights for Brazil.

Objetivo: Este estudo analisou a agência britânica de esporte alto desempenho, UK Sport, oferecendo uma visão detalhada de elementos de governança e sua evolução. Ademais, algumas práticas da agência britânica são comparadas com ações da entidade pública brasileira SNEAR.Método: Utilizou-se um design descritivo e exploratório por meio de um estudo de caso. O procedimento de coleta de dados é caracterizado como pesquisa documental.Relevância: Há uma necessidade contínua de se entender melhor os sistemas esportivos de alto rendimento. Em outro prisma, organizações frequentemente moldam suas estruturas, abordagems e estratégias baseando-se em “concorrentes”. Nos últimos 50 anos, o recente sucesso esportivo do UK Sport pode ser entendido como o mais relevante referente a esportes de elite. Além disso, estudos envolvendo benchmarking ainda são incipientes no Brasil.Resultados: Influenciado pelos Jogos Olímpicos de 2012, a UK Sport evoluiu rapidamente se tornando uma organização mais profissional. Sua evolução profissional foi guiada por aspectos complementares de governança, ou seja, mais e melhor qualificados funcionários, uma composição de Conselho mais “empresarial”, uma nova estrutura organizacional, processos transparentes de recrutamento, mais recursos financeiros disponíveis e investimentos sendo feitos através de metas e critérios estratégicos. Ademais, as administrações duradouras que lideraram a UK Sport forneceram a estabilidade necessária para se implementar mudanças ao longo dos anos.Contribuições: O estudo apresentou algumas idéias que podem ajudar a SNEAR a melhorar suas práticas de governança. Especialmente, um primeiro passo relevante seria publicar seu planejamento estratégico, usando como exemplo o foco estratégico do WCP da UK Sport, sem atletas e esportes não-Olímpicos/Paraolímpicos e menos atletas e esportes Olímpicos/Paraolímpicos recebendo apoio financeiro.

Predicting the factors that impact access to, completion of, and progression through community sport leaders qualifications in the UK

ABSTRACT Sports Leaders UK (SLUK) commissioned this study to explore the socio-economic and demographic factors that influence candidates’ access, completion and progression through formal sport leader qualifications. A sample (n = 76,179) of registered sport leaders, who are defined as those qualified to lead safe, purposeful and enjoyable sport/physical activity at an entry level in local communities, was selected from SLUK’s database covering a five year period. Following frequency analysis and binary logistic regression, findings highlighted certain variables (e.g. gender, experience, locality) as strong predictors of qualification completion and candidate progression through the award system. However, socio-economic status was not found to predict award completion or continued engagement. Frequency analysis indicated an inequality of sport leaders identifying as female, Black or minority ethnic, and/or disabled. This research offers some insight into the landscape of the current and potential future workforce, and has determined factors associated with more sustained involvement in UK sport leader roles. Consequently, such findings are thought to offer a valuable insight into the factors impacting the growth and development of the field.