Geopolitical Economy of Sport
Introduction
Pivotal Moments in a New Era, Edited book; Chapter deadline 1 Sep 2022
INTEREST CATEGORY: SECTORS
POSTING TYPE: Calls: Other
Author: Michael Goldman
Call for chapters of 2,000 – 2,500 words
The Geopolitical Economy of Sport – Pivotal Moments in a New Era
Deadline: 1 September, 2022
Editors: Professor Simon Chadwick, Dr. Paul Widdop, and Dr. Michael Goldman
Russia’s invasion of Ukraine, the global response to this, and the ramifications for sport have put sport’s geopolitical economy front and centre-stage in both the popular imagination and academic thinking. Nevertheless, 2022 was already going to be an important year for sport, with the Winter Olympics and the FIFA World Cup due to take place in Beijing and Qatar respectively. The staging of these events in these countries has been influenced by geographic, political and economic factors, demanding that researchers and writers view sport in new and different ways. There is much to consider, from the way in which countries use natural resource revenues, to accusations of sport washing, to the deployment of sport for soft power purposes, to the way in which sport has become a focus for industrial development. Alongside the examples of Russia, China and Qatar can be added Saudi Arabia, the United Arab Emirates, Israel and Japan, all of which are actively engaged in the geopolitical economy of sport. At the same time, we see can see Great Britain deploying sport as an instrument of soft power; Israel seeking to build a national competitive advantage by positioning itself as a global sports tech start-up hub; and the United States continuing to extend its economic and cultural influence through developments in Africa and India.
The editorial team does not have a fixed agenda in terms of chapters that will ultimately be included in the book. Chapter authors will be given the freedom to propose appropriate chapter titles and content. Nevertheless, as an illustration, the following are suggested as possible areas in which authors may choose to work (some of which relate specifically to Russia’s invasion of Ukraine, others extend beyond this):
- How the war in Ukraine is shaping (and will shape) sport;
- What impact the war is having (and will have) on the governance of sport;
- What impact the war is having (and will have) on the ownership of sport assets;
- How trust in Russian sport has been undermined, and what a route map for the re-integration of Russian sport back into the global sport community can be achieved;
- Differing sport stakeholder responses to Russia’s invasion of Ukraine, including sponsors, fans, governing bodies etc.;
- Part played by Russian soft power in sport;
- Role that sports diplomacy might play in addressing the war;
- Existence of and issues in sports-washing and reputation laundering;
- The geopolitical economy of both Peng Shuai and Eileen Gu;
- China’s Uyghur community and how this may have impacted upon the 2022 Winter Olympic Games;
- Banning of political symbols and statements by the Beijing Winter Games organisers;
- Qatar’s challenges and problems in addressing issues with migrant labour;
- Soft power and/or soft disempowerment of Qatar and its World Cup;
- Qatar’s role in geopolitics as a hedger and a mediator, allied to the role sport plays in the this;
- Issues posed by Saudi Arabian acquisition of Newcastle, as well as the country’s more general investment in sport;
- China’s quest to build the world’s largest domestic sport economy by 2025;
- Staging of Formula 1 Grand Prix in four Gulf states.
CHAPTER FORMAT
- Chapters up to 2,500 words long;
- Accompanied by 100-word biography;
- Harvard referencing;
- Delivery of chapters by 1st September 2022;
- Publication of book by 1st November 2022.
BOOK FORMAT
- 25 chapters in total.
EDITORIAL CONTACTS
Interested authors should contact the editorial team by April 15, 2022 to discuss potential chapter contributions.
- Professor Simon Chadwick chadwick@em-lyon.com
- Dr Paul Widdop paul.widdop@manchester.ac.uk
- Dr Michael Goldman mmgoldman@usfca.edu
FOOTNOTE
Chapter authors may find it helpful to read the following:
- The geopolitical economy of sport – A new era in play
- How 2022 will epitomise sport’s burgeoning geopolitical economy
- From utilitarianism and neoclassical sport management to a new geopolitical economy of sport