Sport and society - Barrie Houlihan

Praise for the First Edition:

"Barrie Houlihan's astonishingly ambitious and skilfully assembled collection examines the relations between sport, social policy and the social context that underlies the two. Organized around such themes as exclusion, commercialism and international comparisons, the book allows the reader to understand not only the centrality of sport to contemporary society, but the often perplexing policies that contrive to encourage or deny participation, promote or deter public sector involvement and support or undermine physical education. Importantly, Houlihan never prioritises the general over the particular, always striving to find detail amid the bigger picture."
-Ellis Cashmore, Professor of Culture, Media and Sport, Staffordshire University

"The most comprehensive study of contemporary issues in sport by leading international scholars. Houlihan's book is the answer to sports students' prayers, full of information, statistics, tables and figures, extensive guides to further reading and, most important of all, challenging ideas. A weighty vademecum for the early 21st century."
-Jim Riordan Honorary Professor of Sports Studies, University of Stirling, Professor Emeritus at University of Surrey, and President of the European Sports History Association

Fully updated and revised, the Second Edition of Barrie Houlihan's ground-breaking book provides students and lecturers with a one-stop text that is comprehensive, multi-disciplinary, accessible, international and engaging. Sport and Society allows students to:

• Approach the study of sport from a multi-disciplinary perspective.


• Understand the importance of social structure, power and inequality in analyzing the nature and significance of sport in society.


• Address the rapid commercialization and regulation of sport.


• Engage in comparative analysis to understand problems clearly and produce sound solutions.


• Expand their knowledge through chapter summaries, guides to further reading and extensive bibliographies.

This Second Edition contains five brand new chapters, which reflect recent concerns with: young athletes and human rights, sport and the city, sport and violence, sport and health, and sport and Islam.

A superb teaching text, it will be relished by lecturers seeking an authoritative introduction to sport and society and students who want a relevant, enriching text for their learning and research needs.