Sports events and cities: Discourses, practices and power

Sports events are commonplace in urban centres and serve as destination cultural experiences for sporting fans and wider audiences. For example, Melbourne hosts annually the Australian Open, the Melbourne F1 Grand Prix, and the Boxing Day Cricket Match. These so-called ‘marquee’ events are complemented by a number of other smaller events, bolstered by government support and funding, and are integral to Melbourne’s aspiration as a global sporting capital. 

In this unit, you will critically examine the discourses, practices, and social agents involved in crafting an economic and cultural ecosystem centred on sports events that shape the cosmopolitan identity of urban cities. You will map the flows of government investment, policy and infrastructure that contribute to the development of a sporting city while exploring the cultural and creative narratives mobilised to justify these events. A key component of the unit is for you to attend one of these events, and supported by event ethnography, to analyse the global, economic, social, and cultural dimensions that intersect to make sports events central to urban life.

You will also engage with theoretical ideas and concepts drawn from critical event studies, tourism, leisure studies, creative and cultural industries, cultural studies, and the sociology of sport. Through this interdisciplinary approach, you will explore the power dynamics shaping these sports events, assess their contested nature across various social spheres, and evaluate whether the benefits they claim to create for the diverse communities that constitute contemporary urban centres stand to scrutiny.