At bachelor's level, the programme provides the theoretical, methodological and empirical foundations of Sociology of Sport and develops the ability to analyse societal questions through evidence.
Faculty 11 · Social and Educational Sciences · Institute 11.1.0
Institute of Sociology
The institute examines social relations, structures, institutions, inequalities and processes of transformation at micro, meso and macro levels. Theory, empirical evidence and societal application are connected with international, interdisciplinary and transdisciplinary perspectives.
Mission and Academic Profile
The institute examines social relations, structures, institutions, inequalities and processes of transformation at micro, meso and macro levels. Theory, empirical evidence and societal application are connected with international, interdisciplinary and transdisciplinary perspectives.
4 DepartmentsTheory · Evidence · Society · Transfer
Departments
- 11.1.1Department of General and Theoretical Sociology
- 11.1.2Department of Social Structure, Inequality and Social Change
- 11.1.3Department of Sociology of Health and the Body
- 11.1.4Department of Sociology of Sport
Sociology of Sport Profile
Academic Description
The Department of Sociology of Sport examines sport as a social, cultural, political and economic field of action. It analyses how social background, ethnocultural contexts, migration, identity, group dynamics, media, commercialisation and institutional conditions shape participation, belonging, performance and public perception in sport. Individual experiences are systematically connected with team, organisational and societal levels.
Teaching and Research Areas
- Theories, history and methods of the sociology of sport
- Team, group, fan and community dynamics
- Migration, ethnicity and transnational sporting biographies
- Identity, belonging, identity conflicts and performance contexts
- Social inequality, inclusion, discrimination and participation
- Idols, stars, role models, fan culture and public celebrity status
- Sports media, platforms, narratives and self-presentation
- Merchandising, sponsorship, branding and sport-related consumer cultures
- Sport policy, federations, clubs, funding and sport development
- Youth recruitment, talent pathways, role-model effects and participation
- Comparative mega-event research, including the FIFA World Cup 2026
- Qualitative, quantitative, ethnographic, network and media-analytic methods
Academic Focus Areas
- Sport, culture and social change
- Migration, identity and performance environments
- Group, fan, idol and role-model dynamics
- Political economy, merchandising and commercialisation
- Sport development, youth pathways and social participation
- Social effects of World Cups and other mega-events
Interdisciplinary and Transdisciplinary Collaboration
The department is academically networked through the Institute of Sociology and the Faculty of Sport and Movement Sciences. Further permanent links connect it with Culture and Ethnology, Psychology and Neurology, Communication Sciences, Business and Economics, Political Sciences, Educational Sciences, and Philosophy of Science and Research Methodology. Its organisational location coordinates responsibility and quality without limiting academic collaboration.
Integration into Degree Programmes
At master's level, Sociology of Sport is advanced through demanding research designs, international comparison and independent empirical projects.
At doctoral level, original research in Sociology of Sport is supervised through theoretically grounded, methodologically transparent work connected to the relevant academic discourse.
Current Empirical Research Fields
- Group and team dynamics in elite, amateur and youth sport
- Migration, ethnocultural backgrounds, transnational belonging and identity work
- Identity conflicts, public expectations and their relationship with well-being and performance contexts
- Football players as idols, stars, role models and carriers of public identification
- Fan cultures, stickers, shirts, merchandising, sponsorship and digital consumer cultures
- Sport development, youth recruitment and role-model effects in clubs and education systems
- The FIFA World Cup 2026 and other mega-events as comparative empirical case fields
Methods, Teaching and Assessment
- Sociological theory and historical contextualisation
- Qualitative interviews, focus groups and ethnography
- Quantitative surveys, secondary-data and longitudinal analysis
- Social network analysis of teams, clubs, federations and fan cultures
- Media, discourse, platform and content analysis
- Comparative case studies, mixed methods and participatory research designs
- Assessment through research reports, data analyses, case studies, portfolios, presentations and independent dissertations
Interdisciplinary and Transdisciplinary Networking
The Sociology of Sport is academically anchored in the Institute of Sociology and permanently connected with the Faculty of Sport and Movement Sciences. Joint research and teaching link social analysis with movement, training, performance, health, sport education, media, economics, politics and culture. Institutes and departments operate as organisational competence centres within an inherently networked university architecture.
AAQ and QAA Reference Framework
The design is guided by AAQ/HEdA requirements relevant to Swiss higher education development and by internationally recognised QAA disciplinary reference points. This documented alignment is a basis for development and quality assurance; it does not claim that accreditation or recognition has already been granted.
Diversity, inclusion, equality of opportunity and social sustainability are systematically addressed in research questions, curricula and access.
Objectives, responsibilities, evaluation results and resulting improvements are integrated into the institutional quality-management system.
The programme profile, qualification objectives, degree pathway and development status are published transparently and formally reviewed before introduction.
The field is assigned defined research objectives, methodologically transparent projects and regular review of objective achievement.
Theory, empirical evidence, inequality, diversity, internationalisation, methodological competence and critical analysis of complex social questions form the disciplinary core.
Historical, social, political, economic and cultural impacts of sport, together with organisation, funding, marketing and sport development, are explicitly covered.
Study Cycles, Quality Assurance and Status
The planned undergraduate pathway provides sociological theory, research methods, social analysis and guided empirical work.
The planned postgraduate pathway advances specialist theory, mixed-methods research, international comparison and independent projects.
The planned doctoral pathway supports original sociological research with transparent methodology, academic supervision and integration into the institute’s research fields.
Transparent development status
Planned academic target structure. Introduction of the degree pathway requires an approved curriculum, ECTS and assessment structure, qualified staff, research and supervision resources, library and digital infrastructure, and all required internal and external approvals.