The institutionalisation of regional public sport policy in the Czech Republic

Abstract

This paper deals with the emerging processes of creation and implementation of regional public policies on sport in the Czech Republic since 2001. It analyses the dynamics between the sport voluntary sector and the public administration. The paper captures the major tenets of the regional public policy for sport and explores the barriers undermining its effective functioning. It is argued that the Czech regional public sport policies are limited by two types of constraints; structural and cognitive. Whereas the structural constraints are defined in terms of politicisation, bureaucratisation, lack of evidence in the policy-making process and lack of interaction, the cognitive constraints are related to the lack of knowledge, the lack of information, the low recognition of sport in the context of other policy issues and the negative public image of public administration. Furthermore, a typology of different styles of support for sport and a typology of different strategies employed by sport associations and clubs to obtain funding are identified. The paper, thus, presents five ideal-types of the regional public support of sport: progressive, bureaucratic, political-clientelist, delegated, and marginalised. Moreover, four different strategies adopted by the sport movement are defined: the adaptation strategy; the pragmatic strategy; the strategy of the marginalised; and the strategy of resignation. The study is based on a qualitative methodology, using a combination of techniques such as semistructured interviews with public administration officers and representatives of the Czech sport movement, secondary analysis of documents and observations. Este estudio trata sobre los procesos de la creación y la implementación de la política del deporte público regional en la república checa desde el 2001. Analiza las dinámicas entre el deporte en el sector del voluntariado y en el del sector de la administración pública. El estudio capta las opiniones principales de la política de deporte público regional y explora las barreras que impiden su capacidad para funcionar efectivamente. Se dice que la política de deportes públicos regionales checa está limitada por dos tipos de restricciones; estructurales y cognitivas. Las restricciones estructurales se definen en términos de la politización, la burocratización, la falta de evidencia en el proceso de la elaboración de las políticas y la falta de interacción, mientras que las restricciones cognitivas están relacionadas con una falta de conocimiento e información junto con un reconocimiento mínimo sobre el deporte en el contexto político y de la imagen negativa que el público tiene de la administración pública. Además, se identifica una tipología de distintos estilos de apoyo hacia el deporte y otra para diferentes estrategias adoptadas por asociaciones y equipos de deporte para conseguir financiación. El estudio presenta 5 tipos ideales *Email: dino.numerato@unibocconi.it Downloaded by [University of Montana] at 16:50 14 December 2014 14 D. Numeratode apoyo público regional para ...

Territorial Justice and Sport: Public Subsidies to Sport in Czech Regions

“…This coincides with the results of previous studies (Slepičková & Flemr, 2007;Numerato, 2009) which stress the differences among the regions and absence of conceptual approaches by the authorities. The results show that there is not any relationship between regional subsidies and the number of sport facilities.…”

“…Bureš also highlighted year-on-year differences which could misrepresent results of this study. It coincides with Numerato (2009) who argues that regional sport policies in the Czech Republic are less strategic, less institutionally complex, less ideologically anchored and more pragmatic and ad-hoc. Moreover, it has been argued that Czech regional public support for sport rarely serves to deliver social welfare objectives as is currently common in other countries (Numerato, 2009).…”

Political clientelism in Turkish sports federations

“…Numerato (2009) considered the political-clientelist type to be a type of sport support and claimed that some stakeholders in sport favour close ties with political representatives in the Czech Republic. Girginov (2009) found clientelism existed in the Bulgarian sports system and demonstrated certain clientelist activities such as political figures building sports facilities in their hometowns.…”

Balancing between coordination, cooperation and competition? A mixed-method approach for assessing the role ambiguity of local sports authorities

“…A number of scholars have addressed this local dimension in sport policies (e.g. Nichols et al 1998, Bergsgard et al 2007, Houlihan and Lindsey 2008, Lindsey 2009, Numerato 2009). This is also where the present paper wants to contribute to the state of research.…”