LABR 2P90 Week 2 Notes
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Capitalists: own means of production
o Marxist view: Workers are exploited and alienated from work
o Capitalists: franchise or team owners
o Athletes: workers/labourers
o In the 1800s and 1900s, individual and team sports became professionalized
 Wealthy owners, large stadiums, endorsements
 Advertising
 A major driver in the commercialization of sports (began in the 80s) was television
o Sports franchises are big businesses. North American sports leagues have grown in market value
considerably
 As the market share of sports teams grows, there are increasingly more lockouts.
 Conflicts between athletes and owners (over compensation)
 Conflicts between athletes and coaches (over working conditions)
Political economy of sport: operate in many markets and operate internationally
Instrumental Rationality: Behaving in the world so that you get exactly what you most want, given the resources
(physical and mental) available to you
o Technology being used in sports
o Quantification, record-keeping, and statistics
o Benching star players during the regular season to keep them healthy for the playoffs
o Specialization in sports
Sports as ideology? Or sports as “social reproduction”?
o Social reproduction: sports allow working people to “recharge their batteries”, like an outlet
 Modern sport functions promote social solidarity
 Personal experience: sports are not the only last means by which fandoms exist. Music is my
example