Introduction

Private football academies—friend or foe? An analysis of Norwegian media's framing of arguments about private football academies and the monopoly of organized sport

“…Table 2 gives an overview of the PAs identified. Despite few points of comparison and no historical context to lean on, the list of PAs appears long, given the strong voluntary tradition and ideology both in Norway and in other Scandinavian, Nordic, and even European countries (Breuer et al, 2015; Green et al, 2019); and considering Norway's small population (appr. 5.4 million) and relatively scattered and rural demography.…”

“…That is, if taken-for-granted doxic arrangements (Bourdieu, 1990) are challenged in football, they can stimulate discussions with implications for changes on a broader scale. In Scandinavia, such discussions have come to the fore, as sport as a voluntary and democratic phenomenon (Green et al, 2019) and the “Norwegian model” comprises specific regulations for children's sport and guidelines for youth sport that aim at providing sport for as many as possible and for as long as possible (Skirstad et al, 2012). However, although faced with an increased competition from international counterparts and actors in the private sector, Norwegian sport in its current form, still holds a unique position as a strong (and possibly end-stage) bastion of organized sport and retains a doxic monopoly on training and competition.…”