Covid-19 has plunged sport of all forms into unprecedented disarray. In elite and commercial settings, dozens of national and international sport events have been postponed or cancelled. The pathogen’s effect has been felt across a range of sports from athletics, rugby and golf to football, tennis and motorsports. It includes global sporting events such as the Tokyo Summer Olympic Games, EURO 2020, the Masters in Augusta and Wimbledon. The potential economic cost and commercial implications for governing bodies, sporting organisations and media corporations is substantial but needs to be considered against the existence of a global health crisis.
In a community and mass participation setting, all forms of organised sport and recreation, as well as commercially based fitness have been suspended, whilst opportunity to engage in outdoor or virtual exercise has been encouraged. Travel restrictions have also changed behaviours. These limitations and changes have affected the rhythms of personal, social and cultural life. This has implications for the benefits and costs traditionally derived from sport, recreation and exercise, whilst perhaps, opening up the possibilities of new behaviours. Non-profit and commercial sporting organisations will also face unprecedented resource challenges and possible changes to patterns of participation in the future.
Managing these tensions across sports is precarious and presents many challenges. What the lessons are from this outbreak are still unclear but the severity of Covid-19 will have lasting and profound impacts on sport.
The aim of this special issue is to explore the impacts of, and future challenges facing, sport from Covid-19. Contributions are welcome from across all settings (e.g. professional sport, community sport and personal recreation and exercise), exploring all outcomes (e.g. health and well-being, social connectedness, employment and human capital) and connected with personal, leadership, organisational, management and resourcing issues (e.g. personal motivation and identity, maintaining and motivating workforces, retaining volunteers, coping with financial shortfalls). We invite contributors to examine conceptually, empirically and theoretically, these impacts and future implications of Covid-19 on sport.
Possible topics include but are not limited to the impact, and/or future consequences, of Covid-19 on:
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- particular sports and events.
- media broadcasters.
- sponsors and sponsorship.
- managing the tension between the economic impact of Covid-19 and the social and ethical responsibilities of sport organisations.
- the constraints and opportunities that sport organisations face and the innovative solutions they have adopted or planned to meet stakeholder and participant needs.
- athlete welfare and responsibility (e.g. the impact on mental health, protecting athletes when playing resumes).
- lockdowns and personal physical activity and identity, health and well-being, and social connectedness.
- volunteers, communities and the social capital connected to sport.
- athlete remuneration and contracts.
- the financing of sport.
- how sports sectors have changed/will have to change (what is and will be the new normal?).
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Submission Instructions
Articles must be submitted in English and follow the guidelines of the Publication Manual of the American Psychological Association (7th edition). The abstract should be structured as indicated in the author guidelines and a maximum of 250 words. The paper should not exceed 8,000 words (including references). Shorter papers of 3000-5000 words are also encouraged so the full scope of the impact of Covid-19 can be presented.
When submitting your paper select the relevant special issue title.
Papers are expected to be published at the end of 2020.
Special Issue Editor(s)
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- Professor James Skinner, Institute for Sport Business, Loughborough University, London J.L.Skinner@lboro.ac.uk
- Professor Aaron C.T. Smith, Institute for Sport Business, Loughborough University, London A.C.T.Smith@lboro.ac.uk
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