Annual Conference 2017
Sport Policy and Politics: the inequality gap, 16-17 March 2017, Manchester
Hosted by Manchester Metropolitan University
We would like to invite you to join us for the 11th Annual conference of the PSA's Sport and Politics Specialist Study Group. The conference: Sport Policy and Politics: The Inequality Gap will be hosted by Manchester Metropolitan University and held at FC United on Thursday 16th and Friday 17th March 2017. Manchester will follow in the tradition set by the PSA Sport sub-group in offering the conference a quality destination and we look forward to receiving abstracts and then warmly welcoming you as our guests in March.
Best wishes
Dr Dan Parnell, Dr Annabel Kiernan, Catherine Elliot, Dr Sara Ward, Dr Paul Widdop, Jon Sibley, Dr Kate Themen, Dr Chris Porter & Professor Mark James (Local organising team)
If you have any questions please do not hesitate to contact: Dr Dan Parnell [email protected]
Call for papers
We live in unprecedented times: super austerity, growing income and wealth inequality, Brexit, nationalist political agendas, a rise of right and left-wing political ideologies. This conference is an opportunity to explore these times and their impacts upon sport*.
*We recognise sports in their broadest forms, including: elite/high performance, competitive, recreational, community, disability and lifestyle sports.
Submission
We welcome Abstracts of up to 300 words for papers that address – but are not limited to - the following themes:
Please email Abstracts (300 words maximum) to: [email protected] by 10 January 2017. Please indicate:
Key dates
Abstract submission: 10 January 2017
Notification of decision: 25 January 2017
Registration deadline: 10 February 2017
Conference: Thursday 16 and Friday 17 March 2017
Confirmed keynote speakers
Cost
To register please visit http://www2.mmu.ac.uk/business-school/research/conferences/sportpolitics/
Why Manchester?
Manchester is a global city that offers a creative and vibrant environment for cultural and sporting consumption. Nationally, the discourse surrounding ‘DevoManc’ or the city’s key role in developing the Northern Powerhouse agenda – alongside Liverpool [capital of culture 2008], Hull [capital of culture 2017], Leeds, Sheffield and Newcastle - all of which make significant contributions to what many would refer to as the holy trinity of football, music and fashion. Manchester, however, punches above its weight, particularly in cultural production. The city’s sports offer ranges from football teams offering a local and global profile, from Pep Guardiola and fan ownership, through to Chinese investment. It has links to the Middle-East, urban regeneration and a number of innovative sport-based public sector health partnerships. Yet, Manchester is a city of great contrasts, where cultural consumption and vast inequality meet; where significant homelessness persists in parallel with the forward march of gentrification. In sport too, the new powerhouse of English football and arguably the richest club in the World resides within one of the most deprived areas of England. Manchester is a city where sport cuts across policy and politics and where change has happened and is happening.
The Sport Policy and Politics: The Inequality Gap Conference 2017 will provide a wide-ranging and interdisciplinary examination of these issues and more. The conference aims to explore the inter-relationship between sport policy and politics by drawing on research from politics and political science and a variety of academic fields, including: sociology, social policy, philosophy, criminology, community and youth work, history, law, geography, and sport studies. Beyond this, the conference is renowned for its supportive collegiate environment, its lively debates and familiar faces. We hope you can join us as a contributor or participant for what we hope will be another memorable conference.
Hotels and accommodation
We would recommend any hotels in and around Oxford Road, Manchester. This is a short commute from the conference venue.
Venue location and background
The club set up in protest to Malcolm Glazer’s takeover of Manchester United’ is a statement often used to describe FC United. But while there is no doubt that FC would not have happened without the American invasion, it was the catalyst, the final straw, but not the sole reason.
The material theft of a Manchester institution, forcibly taken from the people of Manchester, was the tip of a pyramid of destruction, with changing kick off times for the benefit of television, soulless all-seater stadia full of ‘new’ supporters intent to sit back and watch rather than partake in the occasion, heavy-handed stewarding and ridiculously priced tickets propping it all up.
By May 2005 some supporters had had enough. The failure to prevent Glazer and repeat the successful repulsion of Rupert Murdoch in 1998 resurrected a ‘last resort’ idea from that previous campaign and the FC United wheels were put in motion. A group of individuals determined to continue the fight formed a steering committee and FC United of Manchester was delivered.
Critics of the idea argued that if supporters were disgruntled with the Premiership then why didn’t they go and support other local cash-strapped clubs instead of setting up their own? But that wouldn’t have been theirs would it? It wouldn’t have been United and it wouldn’t have been right to takeover another club after they had just been taken over themselves. Nor could they drift off in various directions and be lost to each other and maybe football forever. They wanted to maintain the momentum of the protest, to stick together, to sing United songs, to reminisce and bring back the good bits of the good old days. They wanted Our Club, Our Rules and they got just that, a member owned democratic, not-for-profit organisation created by Manchester United fans. A club accessible to all of the Greater Manchester community, dedicated to encouraging participation of youth whether it be playing or supporting and to providing affordable football for all.
Most recently, FC United have moved into Broadhurst Park, referred to as many as the home of fan-owned football. For further history and research on FC United please see their website: http://www.fc-utd.co.uk/m_phd.php
Best wishes
Dr Dan Parnell, Dr Annabel Kiernan, Catherine Elliot, Dr Sara Ward, Dr Paul Widdop, Jon Sibley, Dr Kate Themen, Dr Chris Porter & Professor Mark James (Local organising team)
If you have any questions please do not hesitate to contact: Dr Dan Parnell [email protected]
Call for papers
We live in unprecedented times: super austerity, growing income and wealth inequality, Brexit, nationalist political agendas, a rise of right and left-wing political ideologies. This conference is an opportunity to explore these times and their impacts upon sport*.
*We recognise sports in their broadest forms, including: elite/high performance, competitive, recreational, community, disability and lifestyle sports.
Submission
We welcome Abstracts of up to 300 words for papers that address – but are not limited to - the following themes:
- Sport, politics & inequalities
- Sport, politics & austerity
- Sport, politics & social exclusion/inclusion
- Sport, politics & neoliberal governance
- Sport, politics & identity/ies
- Sport, politics & criminology
- Sport, politics & law
- Sport, politics & embodiment
- Sport, politics & digital cultures
- Sport, politics & celebrity cultures
- Sport, politics & mega-events
- Sport, politics & (urban) space
- Sport, politics & (public – mental, physical, wellbeing) health
- Sport, politics & human rights
- Sport, politics & innovative and emerging methodologies
- Sport, politics & international development
- Sport, politics & globalization
- Sport, politics, social justice and transformation
Please email Abstracts (300 words maximum) to: [email protected] by 10 January 2017. Please indicate:
- Your institutional affiliation and whether you are a postgraduate student.
- Whether this is an individual: single abstracts from individuals/co-researchers submitting a paper that addresses the conference theme or themes
- Whether you are proposal a panel/workshop, which is a set of abstracts (three minimum) from a group of individuals/co-researchers submitting a coherent set of papers that address the conference themes and which could be scheduled together in one parallel session
- Abstracts should be 250-300 words, structured as follows:
- Full title of paper as it will appear in the conference programme.
- Abstract main body, including background (outline of the context and/or academic literature informing the research), approach (indication of the broad theoretical orientation and/or methodological approach) and significance (description and application of the original research findings reported in the paper).
Key dates
Abstract submission: 10 January 2017
Notification of decision: 25 January 2017
Registration deadline: 10 February 2017
Conference: Thursday 16 and Friday 17 March 2017
Confirmed keynote speakers
- Dr Geoff Pearson. The University of Manchester
- Damian Collins MP, Chair of the Culture, Media and Sport Select Committee
Cost
- £85 for PSA members
- £100 for non-members
To register please visit http://www2.mmu.ac.uk/business-school/research/conferences/sportpolitics/
Why Manchester?
Manchester is a global city that offers a creative and vibrant environment for cultural and sporting consumption. Nationally, the discourse surrounding ‘DevoManc’ or the city’s key role in developing the Northern Powerhouse agenda – alongside Liverpool [capital of culture 2008], Hull [capital of culture 2017], Leeds, Sheffield and Newcastle - all of which make significant contributions to what many would refer to as the holy trinity of football, music and fashion. Manchester, however, punches above its weight, particularly in cultural production. The city’s sports offer ranges from football teams offering a local and global profile, from Pep Guardiola and fan ownership, through to Chinese investment. It has links to the Middle-East, urban regeneration and a number of innovative sport-based public sector health partnerships. Yet, Manchester is a city of great contrasts, where cultural consumption and vast inequality meet; where significant homelessness persists in parallel with the forward march of gentrification. In sport too, the new powerhouse of English football and arguably the richest club in the World resides within one of the most deprived areas of England. Manchester is a city where sport cuts across policy and politics and where change has happened and is happening.
The Sport Policy and Politics: The Inequality Gap Conference 2017 will provide a wide-ranging and interdisciplinary examination of these issues and more. The conference aims to explore the inter-relationship between sport policy and politics by drawing on research from politics and political science and a variety of academic fields, including: sociology, social policy, philosophy, criminology, community and youth work, history, law, geography, and sport studies. Beyond this, the conference is renowned for its supportive collegiate environment, its lively debates and familiar faces. We hope you can join us as a contributor or participant for what we hope will be another memorable conference.
Hotels and accommodation
We would recommend any hotels in and around Oxford Road, Manchester. This is a short commute from the conference venue.
Venue location and background
- Broadhurst Park, 310 Lightbowne Rd, Manchester M40 0FJ
The club set up in protest to Malcolm Glazer’s takeover of Manchester United’ is a statement often used to describe FC United. But while there is no doubt that FC would not have happened without the American invasion, it was the catalyst, the final straw, but not the sole reason.
The material theft of a Manchester institution, forcibly taken from the people of Manchester, was the tip of a pyramid of destruction, with changing kick off times for the benefit of television, soulless all-seater stadia full of ‘new’ supporters intent to sit back and watch rather than partake in the occasion, heavy-handed stewarding and ridiculously priced tickets propping it all up.
By May 2005 some supporters had had enough. The failure to prevent Glazer and repeat the successful repulsion of Rupert Murdoch in 1998 resurrected a ‘last resort’ idea from that previous campaign and the FC United wheels were put in motion. A group of individuals determined to continue the fight formed a steering committee and FC United of Manchester was delivered.
Critics of the idea argued that if supporters were disgruntled with the Premiership then why didn’t they go and support other local cash-strapped clubs instead of setting up their own? But that wouldn’t have been theirs would it? It wouldn’t have been United and it wouldn’t have been right to takeover another club after they had just been taken over themselves. Nor could they drift off in various directions and be lost to each other and maybe football forever. They wanted to maintain the momentum of the protest, to stick together, to sing United songs, to reminisce and bring back the good bits of the good old days. They wanted Our Club, Our Rules and they got just that, a member owned democratic, not-for-profit organisation created by Manchester United fans. A club accessible to all of the Greater Manchester community, dedicated to encouraging participation of youth whether it be playing or supporting and to providing affordable football for all.
Most recently, FC United have moved into Broadhurst Park, referred to as many as the home of fan-owned football. For further history and research on FC United please see their website: http://www.fc-utd.co.uk/m_phd.php
