Sports Management: A Study of Ethical Practices and Challenges

 What is sports management?

Many people who grew up watching or playing sports aspire to work in the industry. Within a sports-related organization, sports management professionals may plan, direct, organize, or budget. The management of various business functions in sports and recreation organizations is referred to as sports management.

 

What role do ethics play in sports?

When we talk about ethics, we're speaking about a moral code. Sports ethics are critical to good sportsmanship. Essential components of fair play include cooperation, gratefulness, honour, modesty, and fair treatment which are principles related to ethical actions in sports that have two dimensions:

 

1. Institutional: It is important to reject discrimination based on factors other than achievement and to apply rules consistently.

 

2. Personal: outcomes should consequence of the meritorious development of individual talent. These moral norms are general and objective, with no subjective guidelines.

 

Diversity

The notion of diversity in sports includes a wide range of people from various ethnic and racial backgrounds. The Association for Applied Sport Psychology (AASP) encourages value through diversity, with no discriminatory practices and no acceptance of cultural bias, and seeks training and education in culturally diverse techniques to effectively serve the diversified patrons in sports.

Integrity 

Integrity in superior efficiency frequently refers to problems involving the use of supplements and anabolic steroid substances, as well as match-fixing or doping. The proper sporting atmosphere allows for the development of values and abilities. Integrity is also frequently associated with the concept of the sportsperson. Because one of the core aspects of sportsmen is fairly flexible, the use of performance-enhancing substances by athletes raises ethical concerns about fairness.

Improved Clarity 

On and off the field, be a positive role model. A lack of clarity is frequently caused by poor communication or a complete lack of it. Coaches can assist athletes to improve their understanding of what is required if they can define their expectations and break them down into distinct roles and behaviours.

Responsible Citizenship

It is also possible to use sports to teach citizens about their responsibilities. Every resident has a role to play in helping others, as well as making our communities work for everyone. Sport fosters effective citizen status by ingraining in young people all over the world the principles of respect, fairness, obligation, and companionship. We can teach young sportspeople the value of caring for their community and contributing.

Ethical challenges in Sports: 

1.    Consumption of Substances

Winning or being first motivates some coaches and athletes to go to any length to achieve success. One of these areas is drug abuse and performance-enhancing drugs in the health world. A few sportsmen resort to performance-enhancing drugs when this behaviour becomes too much to handle.

2.    Hiring Non-Bonafide Athletes

A common deceitful practice used in the attempt to succeed at all costs is the use of non-bonafide athletes who do not qualify for a specific event. They are appointed and bribed solely to win a competition. Countries have been implicated in and convicted of age dishonesty during competitions.

3.    Fixing Matches  

Some sports managers might not wish to compete with a specific team in the preliminary round, avoid it by fixing a match.    Some officials occasionally manipulate sports scores in favour of a specific sportsman.

 

Guidelines to maintain ethics in Sports: 

These ethics rules are primarily a set of principles agreed on by the members of a particular organization or profession. Constructing ethical norms in sports organizations protects the welfare of those it serves.

 

·       Guarantee that, at all levels of engagement and involvement, there are clear guidelines on what constitutes ethical or ethically questionable behaviour.

 

·   Elected Sports governing bodies from various sports zones must establish clear guidelines and impose severe penalties to prevent all types of dishonesty, misconduct, and unethical behaviour.

 

·       In addition to competitiveness, create systems that reward sports ethics and personal levels of success.

 

·       Establish rules that will meet the specific requirements of young people, and emphasize not only competition success but also sports ethics.

 

·     Organizing competition categories following the rules of sports ethics and controlling the ability to compete in competitions.

 

·     The government promotes and upholds ethical standards in all facets of society where sports are practised.

 

·      Increase public understanding of the concept of sports ethics within their domain of influence through initiatives, awards, training tools, and education opportunities.

 

Conclusion

 Ethical and moral issues in sports ease the heated topic these days, however, it is avoidable through Education and training.  Sports management is required to emphasize how diversity can be the ultimate strength in business opportunities across all sports.  Such circumstances take place when big businesses prioritize winning above all else and the top dollar goes to the athlete who performs the utmost, this is the driving force behind many of the modifications in sports today. The most obvious case is player safety. This subject of ethical behaviour affects people's lives in ways other than the outcome of specific sporting events. This will undoubtedly be a touchy subject in the future of ethical sports.

Authors Bio

Authored by Mark Edmonds, a professional assignment writer who strives to elevate and encourage students’ education by providing them with quality assignments. His notable works are Management assignment help and MBA assignment help.