<abstract xmlns="http://www.w3.org/1999/xhtml">Using a combined Huizingian-Bourdieu framework, this paper analyses the significance of sport’s transformation into a business and how the prevailing business structure that defines professional sport has influenced the ‘lived experience’ of those playing at sport’s elite level. Furthermore, this paper highlights how the actions of players, coaches and other participants serve to reinforce, legitimise and normalise the business characteristics of sport’s dominant business structure.Importantly, this paper illuminates how the professionalization of sport corrupts the act of playing and indeed gives rise to play tactics, such as ‘sledging’, which both reflects the increased seriousness of sport and, in its very execution, further reinforces the dominant business structures of professional sport, all the while corrupting the essence of sport – play.In doing so we are challenged to consider how society’s fields could be different in structure, and in the ‘lived experience’ within the field.</abstract>

Using a combined Huizingian-Bourdieu framework, this paper analyses the significance of sport’s transformation into a business and how the prevailing business structure that defines professional sport has influenced the ‘lived experience’ of those playing at sport’s elite level. Furthermore, this paper highlights how the actions of players, coaches and other participants serve to reinforce, legitimise and normalise the business characteristics of sport’s dominant business structure.Importantly, this paper illuminates how the professionalization of sport corrupts the act of playing and indeed gives rise to play tactics, such as ‘sledging’, which both reflects the increased seriousness of sport and, in its very execution, further reinforces the dominant business structures of professional sport, all the while corrupting the essence of sport – play.In doing so we are challenged to consider how society’s fields could be different in structure, and in the ‘lived experience’ within the field.

The Business of Sport, Sledging and the Corruption of Play – an Interpretation through a Huizingian-Bourdieu Lens

Physical Culture and Sport. Studies and Research

This work is licensed under the Creative Commons Attribution-NonCommercial-NoDerivatives 3.0 License.

Using a combined Huizingian-Bourdieu framework, this paper analyses the significance of sport’s transformation into a business and how the prevailing business...

The Business of Sport, Sledging and the Corruption of Play – an Interpretation through a Huizingian-Bourdieu Lens

Published Online: Feb 23, 2019

Page range: 15 - 26

Received: Mar 12, 2018

Accepted: Dec 20, 2018

DOI: https://doi.org/10.2478/pcssr-2018-0027

Keywords
sport, play, sledging, Huizinga, Bourdieu

© 2018 Samuel Keith Duncan, published by Sciendo

This work is licensed under the Creative Commons Attribution-NonCommercial-NoDerivatives 3.0 License.

The Business of Sport, Sledging and the Corruption of Play – an Interpretation through a Huizingian-Bourdieu Lens

Published Online: Feb 23, 2019

Page range: 15 - 26

Received: Mar 12, 2018

Accepted: Dec 20, 2018

DOI: https://doi.org/10.2478/pcssr-2018-0027

Keywordssport, play, sledging, Huizinga, Bourdieu

© 2018 Samuel Keith Duncan, published by Sciendo

This work is licensed under the Creative Commons Attribution-NonCommercial-NoDerivatives 3.0 License.

Keywords
sport, play, sledging, Huizinga, Bourdieu