Table Of ContentThe Sociology of Sports
ALSOBYTIMDELANEYANDTIMMADIGAN
Beyond Sustainability: A Thriving Environment(2014)
The Sociology
of Sports
An Introduction
Second Edition
Tim Delaney and
Tim Madigan
McFarland & Company, Inc., Publishers
Jefferson, North Carolina
All photographs provided by Tim Delaney unless otherwise noted.
LIBRARYOFCONGRESSCATALOGUING-IN-PUBLICATIONDATA
Delaney, Tim.
The sociology of sports : an introduction /
Tim Delaney and Tim Madigan. — Second edition.
p. cm.
Includes bibliographical references and index.
ISBN 978-0-7864-9767-6 (softcover : acid free paper) ♾
ISBN 978-1-4766-2191-3 (ebook)
1. Sports—Sociological aspects. I. Madigan, Tim, 1962–
II. Title.
GV706.5.D463 2015 306.4'83—dc23 2015022386
BRITISHLIBRARYCATALOGUINGDATAAREAVAILABLE
© 2015 Tim Delaney and Tim Madigan. All rights reserved
No part of this book may be reproduced or transmitted in any form
or by any means, electronic or mechanical, including photocopying
or recording, or by any information storage and retrieval system,
without permission in writing from the publisher.
On the cover: (top) President Calvin Coolidge and Washington Senators
pitcher Walter Johnson shake hands on June 18, 1925 (Library of Congress);
(bottom) crowd cheers the Thunderbirds squadron flyover prior to
Superbowl XLIII in Tampa, Florida, on February 1, 2009 (U.S. Air Force)
Printed in the United States of America
McFarland & Company, Inc., Publishers
Box 611, Jefferson, North Carolina 28640
www.mcfarlandpub.com
Tim Delaney dedicates this text to two
early founders of the sociology of sport
who had a great influence on him—
James H. Frey and Hal Charnofsky
Tim Madigan dedicates the book
to two other stalwarts in the sociology
of sports—Don Sabo and Merrill Melnick
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Table of Contents
Preface 1
1. The Sociology of Sport 3
2. Social Theory and Sport 26
3. A Brief History of Sport 50
4. The Impact of Sport on Culture 72
5. Socialization and Sport 95
6. Youth Sports 117
7. High School and College Sports 144
8. Deviance in Sport 174
9. Violence in Sport 203
10. Gender and Sport 232
11. Race and Ethnicity in Sport 259
12. Economics and Sport 289
13. Politics and Sport 316
14. Religion and Sport 346
15. The Media in Sport 371
16. What’s Trending in Sports 393
Glossary 419
Bibliography 429
Index 457
vii
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Preface
Sport is a universal phenomenon. There is no known culture which has not engaged in some
sort of sporting activity, and participating in and being a spectator of various sports is an important
aspect of most people’s lives. From early childhood, individuals start the process of taking part
in organized games, and it is a rare person who has no interest at all in rooting for (or against)
particular organized teams. The study of sport, therefore, is of value, both for its own sake and
for what it can tell us about individuals and societies in the broadest way.
This book is designed to serve as a textbook for a wide variety of sport- related academic
courses. It represents a fresh approach to the study of sport in society including a critical exami-
nation of sport while also highlighting many of its positive features. Unlike other textbooks, The
Sociology of Sports provides a chapter about sports’ impact on American culture (Chapter 4). It is
a glaring oversight that other textbooks—many of which are edited anthologies with a bewildering
array of authors—do not include such a chapter. There is also a chapter on the history of sports
to help put the discussions within an historical framework.
We are delighted that The Sociology of Sports, originally published in 2009, is now appearing
in a second edition. The first edition was a straightforward, s tudent-f riendly presentation of key
sociological concepts and issues that pertain to the sociological study and analysis of sport in con-
temporary society (such as socialization, economics, gender, race, ethnicity, religion, politics, the
media, and the role of sport in society). While it provided a solid foundation for showing how
pervasive sports is to our everyday lives, we felt it was important to update the many examples that
were used throughout the text to illustrate various sociological concepts relating to sports. In the
second edition we have made several changes. Each chapter, for instance, concludes with a popular
culture section. We want to show how films, television series, music, and short stories have all con-
tributed to our understanding of sports’ significance to our lives. Tables and charts have been
updated with the most current data, new tables have been created, including in Chapter 6, youth
sport participation, and the section dealing with heroes in sports has been greatly expanded, as
has the section dealing with the s elf-e steem issues that people have through identifying with their
favorite sports teams.
Other new features in the second edition include up- to-date information, including statistics
on player salaries and owners’ earnings, and a look at recent controversies in sports involving such
issues as p erformance-e nhancing drug usage, domestic violence, and online gambling. We have
added a section detailing how collegiate sports are governed by a number of large administrative
bodies, including the National Collegiate Athletic Association (NCAA); the National Association
of Intercollegiate Athletics (NAIA); and the National Junior College Athletic Association
(NJCAA). We added a new section on the growing concern of concussions and post- career health
problems (e.g., Chronic Traumatic Encephalopathy, or CTE for short). And we take a close look
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