WHAT IS SPORTS MANAGEMENT?

Sports Management deals with the business or commercial aspects of sports. The increase in popularity and growth of sports participation in India in the past decade or so has led to the commercialisation of many sports leading to the mushrooming of professional leagues. As a result, the demand for professionals specialising in sports business management has been on the rise which is where sports management education comes into the picture.

ADVANTAGES OF PURSUING A SPORTS MANAGEMENT COURSE

• As touched upon earlier the sports industry is growing and with that the demand for sports professionals. Apart from international and domestic competitions, many sports federations have created their own leagues which are well established and demand highly skilled and talented sports professionals in their management. A sports management course helps an individual with attaining the requisite skill-set to be successful in the sports industry.
• The sports industry provides a wide variety of employment opportunities. For example, to name a few, an individual with a flair for writing or presenting can choose sports journalism, someone with an interest in hands-on physical work may choose sports events management while someone with persuasion skills can choose marketing, public relations and player management.
• For umpteen sports fans out there pursuing a course in sports, management is an ideal option to channel their love of sports and understanding of sports-related matters into a career in the sports industry. It also allows them an advantage over other non-sports management professionals when it comes to employment opportunities.
• An individual who possesses the right skill-set and aptitude developed through sports education and work experience can attract lucratively and a variety of work opportunities across the sports industry. Moreover, someone with a business idea, resources and risk-taking capacity can consider choosing sports entrepreneurship which can also be a rewarding career path.

 WHAT DO YOU LEARN IN A SPORTS MANAGEMENT COURSE?

A Sports Management course comprises some of the general business management subjects such as Management Principles, Marketing, Financial Management, and Human Resource Management. However, these subjects are adapted for sports business management students with the necessary content including examples and case studies. In addition to these, there are other subjects that are distinctive to sports management studies. Let us look at a few of them below –

• Sports Event Management – No sport exists without its events. A host of things go into the successful delivery of an event which requires individuals taking care of operations, marketing, players and officials’ travel arrangements, sponsorship, security, ticketing and much more.
• Sports Facility Management – The sports stadiums, academies, training grounds and sports recreation facilities require a dedicated and skilled team of individuals who understand the intricacies of designing, developing and managing a facility according to a particular sport’s needs.
• Sports Law & Governance – Sports Law is a fast-growing area of law in India that concerns legal aspects of sports such as contracts, doping, corruption and intellectual property to name a few. Sports Governance refers to the management of a sports organisation through the formulation and adherence of its policies and regulations in the form of organisation-level constitutions and code of conducts.
• Athlete Management – Also known as Player Management it relates to the handling of an athlete’s professional and even personal aspects. Negotiating endorsement deals, making travel arrangements, handling contractual matters with the Board/Employer, managing their finances, etc. The individuals who represent the athletes are known as sports agents. It is another lucrative career option.
• Sports Tourism – Die-hard sports fans desire to travel across the world to watch the prestigious tournaments of the sport they follow. Not only tournaments these fans are equally interested in visiting places that have a rich history of sports. To cater to this a number of firms have emerged which provide sports holiday packages. This could be an area that potentially includes a number of entrepreneurial opportunities.

 THE ISST APPROACH

As part of our sports management courses, we cover the above-mentioned subjects and aspects of sports management studies and much more. However, the level to which they are covered depends upon the type and duration (Masters or Diploma) of the course. Though we give high importance to curricular studies our focus is equally on giving practical exposure to students as we believe practical opportunities in the form of internships, real-life projects and events lead to the all-round development of a student and makes them industry-ready. An individual who has rich experience is always more competent and in demand in the sports industry. As a result, we have designed our courses with that philosophy in mind.