Is Sport Really Religion? Critical Assessments

Some scholars argue, over the past four decades, broadly that sport constitutes religious activity or, more specifically, that specific sports qualify as religious activity. In this paper, I provide two critical discussions which question the “sport as religion” position. These counterarguments are not based in theological-insider considerations supposing that religion is qualitatively distinct or sui generis as a means of defending religion’s uniqueness; rather, I provide a postcolonial rebuttal followed by a feminist critique of the “sport as religion” claims. These arguments combined demonstrate the continued colonial and patriarchal legacies attached to a “sport as religion” claim. None of these counterarguments, in as much as I can find, have been engaged by scholars holding the “sport as religion” position. My overall goal relates more to continuing a deeper discussion of religion, sport, and the potential interactions, overlaps, and engagements of these cultural phenomena rather than fully dismissing the “sport as religion” argument. In the end, I invite further consideration of the included arguments from scholars interested in sport and religion discourse.