ABSTRACT
Sport is a multidimensional global phenomenon. It can revitalize communities and nations while problematizing conditions of existence through policy development and implementation. The purpose of this chapter is to explore utilization of sport policies and centralized sports governance structures in global context. The chapter deconstructs how sport bodies shape policy and governance in post-colonial contexts, drawing examples from diverse countries worldwide and explicates how indigenous communities use sport positively to engage the youth and adults for purposes of cultural preservation and community revitalization while paying attention to corporations that bring challenges to cultures and societies. Finally, the chapter demonstrates how sport managers navigate the ever-changing landscapes of political institutions, sport organizations, and communities to meet individual, social, and economic needs through sport competitiveness, efficacy, and leadership, and explains how sport policies follow a two-pronged approach – sport for all and for elite sport – in spite of challenges faced at varying levels of implementation in global context.
