Development Initatives
Commercialization, Commoditization and Privatization of Football in Asia
Paper Presentation in a Themed Session Dharav Shah
Football is one of the most watched sport in the world with estimated 3.5 billion fans, with 4 Asian countries occupying the top 10 in the most watching countries. Vietnam, Thailand, India and China being the major football viewing countries in Asia. Football is said to be the most globalized sport and it’s rise in Asia during the 2000’s has shown a major platform for commercialization of the sport so as to develop as a footballing nation producing both individual talent and to be known for its own culture of football. The study would be based on the comparison of various various football leagues throughout Asia and will be compared upon factors such as commercialization, privatization, advertisement and sponsorship, cultural exchange, academic education, youth academy, stadium facilities and infrastructure. This study will help show if commercialization, privatization and commoditization helps the countries to improve their football and also provide us with justification of which model is likely to achieve success. Asian football was majorly overlooked during the 1990’s but in the recent years it has been on the rise with capturing attention of major European leagues and players with the amount of money involved.This year India hosted the Fifa U-17 world cup and it proved to be a huge success in terms of highest attended and most goals scored in a tournament ever. The overall tally of attendance across all matches was recorded to be 1,290,027. The Chinese super league and the Indian Super league are considered to be the top leagues of the country and a stepping stone towards achieving success in football. China has been able to bring top European players to play in the country through money and India has managed to bring retired football greats. Other Asian countries like Vietnam, Thailand, Japan and South Korea are steps ahead with South Korea and Japan both qualifying for the 2018 world cup.
Closing the Sale When It Counts: Developing a Course in Sport Sales
Paper Presentation in a Themed Session Dene Williamson, Sam Caucci
Today’s generation does not lack the skills to succeed in the workforce, but rather lacks the experiences necessary to develop the skills and habits that are critical to succeeding at their job. By 2020, 50% of the workforce will be a millennial. It is a generation that will have played over 10,000 hours on a gaming platform before the age of 21. Using the latest research into how gaming mechanics can be used to place students in situations that enhance the likelihood of developing the necessary skills for the workforce, The Sales Game platform is preparing students for a career in sports. With over 90% of sports jobs starting in a sales or revenue generating role, our education most adapt to the increased demand of employers to hire candidates that have a better, and deeper understanding of how to perform in sales.
Power of Branded Values: ESPN’s Legitimization of Sports Betting
Paper Presentation in a Themed Session Jason Lopez
Historically, moral and social concerns about gambling have been influenced primarily by the interests of powerful institutions like governments and religious organizations. However, with the success of fantasy football, powerful sports media companies such as ESPN have realized that it is in their economic interests to engage audiences through the proliferation of activities, usually in the form of games, that surround sports. One result of this has been a recent push to legitimate and normalize betting on sports across many of ESPN’s platforms: from explicit discussions of gambling on TV and radio shows, to coverage of various betting activities on the ESPN website and app, to the creation of an entire website focused on gambling. These numerous platforms generally serve ESPN’s avowed purpose of being a lifestyle and not just a sports channel, and in this case they are being mobilized to transform engagements with gambling into natural, everyday activities. This represents a change in the way that influential bodies have attempted to shape perceptions of gambling. Whereas governmental and religious institutions have done so mainly through top-down rules or prohibitions, ESPN is using people’s everyday and mundane connections to its channel and brand in order to shift values surrounding this controversial cultural practice.
Comparing the Practices of US Golf against a Global Model for Integrated Development of Mass and High Performance Sport
Paper Presentation in a Themed Session Peter Smolianov, Steven Dion, Christopher Schoen
A questionnaire was developed for the following elements of the model: talent development; advanced athlete support; training centers; competitions; intellectual services; partnerships with supporting agencies; and, balanced and integrated funding and structures of mass and elite sport. Survey questions were validated by 12 international experts including executives from sport governing bodies, golf coaches, academicians, and administrators. To determine the areas for improvement, 102 coaches completed the questionnaire.
