DEVELOPMENT ANALYSIS OF THE FIELD OF SPORTS ECONOMICS

Abstract

 In earlier periods, sport was limited to services produced by small, non-profit organizations. Such a structure did not fit within the scope of interest of the broader economy. Over the past 20 years, the growing recognition of the connection between “sport” and “society,” combined with increasing commercialization and professionalization trends, has fostered the expansion of for-profit sectors within sport, thereby creating a foundation that aligns more closely with the nature and mechanisms of the economy. Sports economics is a relatively young academic discipline that has been developed to a limited extent and exhibits substantial structural differences across countries. The first systematic studies addressing the economic aspects of sport began in the United States during the 1950s. In European nations, research on sports economics emerged considerably later. While the American approach to sports economics generally reflects a market-driven, typical American style, the German approach emphasizes institutional structuring more prominently.