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Commodification spiralling down to the football’s grassroots: a case study on football’s ecological development

2023; Taylor & Francis; Linguagem: Inglês

10.1080/23750472.2023.2182826

2375-0480

Hallgeir Gammelsæter, Kjell Marius Herskedal, Birnir Egilsson,

Sports Analytics and Performance

Research question In light of the widening financial and sporting gaps across nations, leagues, and clubs in European football, we ask what measures smaller nations take to keep track with the competition. In focusing on the case of Norway, we look at the major steps taken to increase the competitiveness of men’s football; explore the narratives that motivate these steps; and discuss conflicts and consequences arising across the initiatives and their effects on the larger ecosystem of football.Research methods The study relies on open sources: documents from the football organizations; interviews by football’s spokespersons to media outlets; and opinion expressed in media by pundits and commentators.Results and findings Concomitant with steepening the competition pyramid the football association and the premier league have targeted talent development through programmes that professionalize the social world of young players while increasingly putting social values and recruitment under pressure.Research contribution The study is one of few that directs attention towards the ecosystem of European football beyond the developments at its apex.Practical implication Football and public authorities should ask how far and how one should pursue talent for professional football before the system gets out of control.