Sport Entrepreneurship

Entrepreneurship is an important process that transforms sport through innovation and creativity and the purpose of this chapter is to focus on the link between sport and entrepreneurship to derive an understanding of sports entrepreneurship. This chapter highlights how there is a substantive gap in the entrepreneurship and sports literature that requires further concept attention. The role of entrepreneurship and innovation is discussed that includes a focus on the process stages and includes an emphasis on initiative in the sports context that may determine how sports entrepreneurship is cultivated. An overview of the chapters and the reasons why this book contributes to the emerging sports entrepreneurship literature is stated.

The purpose of this chapter on the sport industry and entrepreneurship is to explore the concepts to advance the field. A novel approach of integrating the practical perspectives about the sport industry with the sports entrepreneurship literature is discussed in order to see the social context of sport. The intention is to generate fresh insights into sport as a form of entrepreneurship, which opens up the field to more discussion. This chapter will provide an overview of the sports industry and entrepreneurship literature although research in this area is still in a nascent stage. This will help to understand the entrepreneurial strategies and growth in the sports context.

In order to gain insights into sport entrepreneurship it is important to trace the historical background of how it has developed. This provides a useful way to include examples of how entrepreneurial projects are started and their trajectory in a sport context. In this chapter it is argued that game changes in sport are based on environmental trends that enable creativity to develop and link with business practice. This is important in enabling sport entrepreneurship to be enacted but also helps in providing feedback about innovative practices.

This chapter focuses on the role of athlete entrepreneurship by discussing how sport business ventures develop from athletes. The topic of athlete entrepreneurship has practical significance as it is embedded within sporting ecosystems. This has meant that athletes as entrepreneurs is a natural progression due to their competitive nature. The role of athletes as entrepreneurs is stated in this chapter as a novel way to understand competitive dynamics in sport.

The aim of this chapter is to focus on different perspectives of sport entrepreneurship in order to develop a better theoretical foundation. This will help by enabling engagement with stakeholders in sport as a way to advocate entrepreneurship. The historical foundation of entrepreneurship is discussed that leads to an overview of the role of sport and lifestyle entrepreneurship. Different research dimensions of sport entrepreneurship are then highlighted as a way to facilitate knowledge infrastructures in sport. The role of sport leadership is stated that links in with a focus on sport team cohesion. In conclusion, the collaborative economy is discussed as a way for sport organizations to engage in the entrepreneurship.

Sport has become increasingly popular in society due to its role in community development and participation. This chapter highlights how entrepreneurship is evident in sport as there is more attention about the role of business. The role of sport networks are a way entrepreneurs utilize social capital to build business ventures is discussed. This can occur through entrepreneurial ecosystems that encourage the dynamic interaction of multiple stakeholders in sport. The chapter also examines how opportunities need to recognized in sport by recognizing how innovation can be co-created in the marketplace. This is discussed in terms of the role of sport business as a way to link sport to entrepreneurship.

This chapter focuses on the role of process in sport entrepreneurship. The importance of entrepreneurship in the sport industry given the increased interest in sport business is discussed. Next, the current state of research about sports entrepreneurship in terms of the evolution and development of innovation processes is stated. There is then a examination of how sport and entrepreneurship processes work together to show how they are inextricably linked. This means that the newness of sport entrepreneurship in academia is the result of increased interest of its important in society. Therefore, there is a clear gap in the literature about sport entrepreneurship and its processes, which is the main objective of this chapter.

This chapter addresses the issue of ethics in sport entrepreneurship, which is an important part of the global business environment. Ethics in sport has potential to understand the social problems caused by political and environmental circumstances. The emerging sport entrepreneurship literature has limited discussion about the role of ethics in the creation of sport ventures, which is surprising as it is an important component of the business creation process. There are policy and practice issues concerning sport ethics that influence its role in entrepreneurial sport ventures. Most of the current research about sport ethics tends to focus on organizational and player behaviors with little linkage to entrepreneurship. The general interest in sport has sparked concerns for ethical issues raised by changing technology and societal expectations. Despite the entrepreneurship abundant in sport, to date little or hardly any attention has been placed on its influence on sport ethics. This chapter seeks to address the missing gap in the literature about entrepreneurship in sport ethics. Therefore, the role of sport ethics to entrepreneurship is examined as a valuable contribution to the literature.

Sport is taught at a range of educational levels from primary and high school to post-graduate university level. Most of the existing educational programs about sport focus on the fitness or physical activity component rather than the business perspective. There has been a tendency to stay with the established curriculum rather than try new and innovation sport management subjects. Due to the increased interest in sport business there needs to be a change in sport education to include more emphasis on entrepreneurship education. In addition, there has been an increase in the number of students who will be self-employed in the sport sector. These students are entering different kinds of careers than in the past that require entrepreneurial thinking. The goal of this chapter is to discuss why there needs to be a new field of sport entrepreneurship education taught in educational institutions. This will help teach students about business principles that are needed for their future careers. This chapter addresses the concept of sports entrepreneurship education as well as some aspects related to the role of education in sport. The chapter concludes by discussing how the view of entrepreneurship education has changed in the last decade with the realization that more practical experience is necessary in sport.

Sport entrepreneurship is a rapidly emerging new research field that combines sport management with entrepreneurship and innovation research. The aim of this chapter is to discuss the reasons for interest in sport entrepreneurship by explaining its definition and application in the business management area. The objectives of the book in terms of theory development and practical implication for those interested in sport as an entrepreneurial endeavor are discussed. This includes an overview of the future for sports entrepreneurship in terms of how to include more innovation and competitiveness. The chapter concludes by suggesting future research paths in terms of interesting ways to approve this interdisciplinary field by engaging in creative studies that have a practical implication.