Rights-based Youth Sport: An Overlooked Area of Importance for Youth Studies

Participating in organized club sport constitutes a vital part of many young people's lives.This is particularly true in the Nordic countries, where almost all children have spent time in sport clubs at the point of reaching youth (Elofsson et al., 2019;Rask et al., 2020;Strandbu et al., 2017).Sport participation thus plays an important role in making friends and being included in social networks (Strandbu et al., 2016) as well as in the construction of social identity (Ronkainen & Ryba, 2020;Wrang et al, 2023).Being 'good at sport' is also often attributed to high social status among peers, especially for boys (Dalen & Seippel, 2021).In addition, participating in organized club sport involves more than being physically active since, in several respects, the participation will foster young people and shape their opinions, thoughts and normative beliefs also in adulthood (Redelius, 2021).Even though youth research for decades has explored the significance of subcultural arenas such as street sport activities and their importance in the construction of youth identities (Blackman, 2014;Hodkinson, 2012), less attention has been given to organized club sport within youth studies so far.We believe this is detrimental since research at the intersections of sport sociology and youth studies has much to offer in exploring the full range of young people's everyday lives.Considering the