Classism in Organised Sport: Theoretical and Empirical Insights

Summary The concept of classism has received little attention in the field of sport sociology. This article therefore aims to introduce the concept’s basic theoretical principles and apply them to the field of organised sport. On the basis of existing research and original interview data, I demonstrate that mechanisms rooted in classism operate within organised sport. For example, these mechanisms manifest themselves through financial and spatial exclusions, practices of normalisation and discipline, and forms of symbolic devaluation. By combining conceptual groundwork with field-specific empirical insights, the article proposes pathways for a classism-critical research perspective in the sociology of sport.