Background
Over the past century, the planning, hosting, and post-event leverage of major sport events have frequently produced negative conditions for humans and unbearable scenes of human rights abuses. To date, there is a lack of synthesis of existing evidence regarding the ways in which management of major sport events enables advancement of human rights or harms human rights. Such insights are needed to better protect and promote human rights based on scientific findings. Thus, the aim of this article is to review the event management and adjacent literature to identify conceptual contributions to existing claims, frameworks and theories, and to outline pathways for researchers to investigate human rights topics at major sport events.
Study design and findings
The authors critically review 130 peer-reviewed English language articles to identify conceptual contributions to research and practice. The findings reveal that politics and political reform, legal frameworks and organizational actions are crucial influences in when and how management of events promotes or harms human rights. The most frequently considered rights in the literature are: equality, human trafficking-related, sport as a human right, worker rights and freedom of residence. Activism for human rights stimulates change within relevant stakeholders via collaboration, naming and shaming, in-public debates, and media coverage.
Implications
The committed, transparent, and inclusive consideration of human rights in all stages of managing sport events (from bid preparation, bidding, planning, and hosting to post-event leverage) may increase the likelihood that the event has social benefits. Longitudinal studies assessing relevant constructs along the event lifecycle may reveal novel insights.
Contact
Chair of Sport and Health Management
Prof. Dr. Jörg Königstorfer
Secretary: Mirjam Merz
Uptown Munich Campus D
Georg-Brauchle-Ring 60/62
80992 Munich Germany
Phone: +49.89.289.24559
Fax: +49.89.289.24642
info.mgt@sg.tum.de