Research

Expertise

Sport management is the process of governance, leadership, and management of sport organizations to facilitate social and economic value through the sport experience in all its forms and at all levels (Shilbury, 2022).

The expertise of Sport Management UCLouvain is articulated around three axes:

• Governance and strategy
  Sport governance is the “processes and structures used by the organization to develop its strategic goals and direction, monitor its performance against these goals, and ensure that the board acts in the best interests of the organization’s members” (ASC, 2004). Strategy is a set of actions designed to achieve the goals of sport organizations, achieve success on the field, and develop the sport. The formulation of strategy, particularly through a strategic plan, is an important task for senior managers and the board of directors. The continuous process of professionalization of sport organizations and commercialization of sport requires more transparency, control, democratic processes and strategic capabilities. Our research focuses on the factors influencing good governance and its impact on sport, but also on organizational capacity, deviant behavior, the role of the president, the implications and the management of passion in governing bodies.
• Diversity and inclusion
  Diversity refers to the heterogeneity of individual profiles within a social unit such as a sports team, a board of directors or a sport federation, while inclusion is the way in which each individual profile is included in that social unit. Diversity and inclusion are among the major issues facing sport and our society at large. These notions concern a set of characteristics such as gender, sex, geographical and socio-cultural origins, age, religion or sexual orientation. Our research focuses on the findings, the obstacles and the equity approaches implemented by the sport movement in order to combat discrimination in leadership (governance, management, refereeing, coaching), management, volunteering, and sport participation.
• Corporate social responsibility and sustainability
  Both international and local sport organizations are faced with many social, ethical and environmental challenges. Corporate social responsibility (CSR) and sustainability practices aim to respond to the high expectations of society towards the sport movement. Our research aims to contribute to these theoretical and empirical developments through a set of questions such as: How to integrate sustainable development objectives in the activities of a sport organization? How to lead changes in practices within the organization and with its partners? How to integrate CSR in its strategy? What are the skills of a socially responsible leader? How to evaluate and communicate the impact of these societal commitments?