ABSTRACT
This chapter looks at the issue of stakeholder engagement in European football and argues that there are both normative and instrumental reasons that underpin the need for football clubs to engage with stakeholders. It presents findings from a survey aimed at those football clubs playing within the top division within the 53 leagues across Europe. The survey focused on a range of corporate social responsibility (CSR)-related issues: this chapter sets out, in a descriptive manner, what it is that football clubs within Europe are doing to engage with different stakeholders. The results show that a large majority of these clubs are involved in a variety of stakeholder initiatives for the community and employees. However, the research found that a majority of clubs consider making connections with the community a significant challenge, demonstrating that clubs are not automatically embedded within their communities. The results also show that clubs’ engagement with a variety of environmental initiatives is less prevalent. Given the increased attention on environmental issues in recent years, this may be an area to which football clubs need to devote more attention.
