ABSTRACT
This chapter examines how the concept of social capital has become embedded within the political context of sport delivery in England, and the impact that this process has had upon those individuals who participate at a grass roots level on a regular basis. The importance of analysing social capital in relation to English sport stems largely from a dominant political context that has privileged modernisation, communitarianism and the centrality of civil society as a framework for civic renewal, active citizenship and community development (Finlayson, 2003; Morisson, 2004). Moreover, the high dependence on sport volunteers to provide the majority of sport participation opportunities (Taylor et al., 2003) and their presumed ‘critical contribution’ to building a ‘strong and cohesive society’ (Neuberger, 2007, p. 3) again highlight the importance of locating social capital within the political temperature of the day. Indeed Siisiainen (2000) has argued that Putnamian interpretations of social capital are only really valid in the context of sport and leisure associations.
