Sport and National Identities

While globalisation has undoubtedly occurred in many social fields, in sport the importance of ‘the nation’ has remained. This book examines the continuing but contested relevance of national identities in sport within the context of globalising forces. Including case studies from around the world, it considers the significance of sport in divided societies, former global empires and aspirational nations within federal states.

Each chapter looks at sport not only as a reflection of national rivalries but also as a changing cultural tradition that facilitates the reimagining of borders, boundaries and identities. The book questions how these national, state and global identifications are invoked through sporting structures and practices, both in the past and the present. Truly international in perspective, it features case studies from across Europe, the UK, the USA and China and touches on the topics of race, religion, terrorism, separatism, nationalism and militarism.

Sport and National Identities: Globalisation and Conflict is fascinating reading for anyone with an interest in the sociology of sport or the relationship between sport, politics, geography and history.

Paddy Dolan is a sociologist at the Dublin Institute of Technology, Ireland. He is co-editor of the European Journal for Sport and Society (Routledge), editorial board member and book review editor of Human Figurations and serves on the editorial board of Sociological Research Online. Dr Dolan's research interests include figurational sociology, sport, childhood, emotions and national and cosmopolitan identities. His work with Dr John Connolly (Dublin City University) on Gaelic games and the Gaelic Athletic Association has been widely published. He co-edited (with Katie Liston) Sport, Race and Ethnicity: The Scope of Belonging? (Routledge), and his work has been published in Sociology, British Journal of Sociology, Sport in Society, International Journal of the History of Sport, Organization and Media, Culture & Society amongst others.

John Connolly is a senior lecturer at Dublin City University, Ireland. His research interests include the sociology of sport, organisational change and advertising. Along with Dr Paddy Dolan (Dublin Institute of Technology) he has published extensively on various aspects of Gaelic games and the Gaelic Athletic Association. His most recent work has examined the subject of doping in professional cycling. He is a member of the editorial board of the European Journal for Sport and Society. His work on the sociology of sport has been published in leading journals, such as Sociology, Organization, Current Sociology, Sport in Society and Media, Culture & Society in addition to many others.