Critical Comparison of How Sport is Delivered in the United Kingdom and Nigeria - Coursework Example

Sports Delivery in UK and Nigeria Introduction Sports delivery in countries like the United Kingdom and Nigeria has its share of strategies and controversies. The various aspects concerned with the delivery of sports concerns the development of various policies. The other aspects of importance in the delivery of sports issues relates to the provision of funds for sports activities and athletes. To solve these aspects and other influences, the governments have developed various strategies to meet sports needs. In the UK, the sport’s governing body has developed various policies to limit aspects of discrimination. The government’s plans in curbing the menace relate to its development of the Equality & Diversity Strategy, Policy Action plans. The UK sports delivery team will not tolerate aspects of discrimination in the body (Culley & Pascoe, 2009). There will be no discrimination based on individuals’ background, race and religious beliefs. The government agency further collaborates with other players on the globe. Aspects of Comparison In relation to Nigeria, sports policies have been in existence since 1989. The representation of sports activities in Nigeria traces its roots to the colonial period. During the colonial period in Nigeria, sports were regarded for military formations (Akinduijre, 1992). The governing authority of the period saw sports as an aspect of military training and for leisure. Sports in the country were essentially not in the curriculum. The engagement of sports activities in school came during break periods and in afternoon sessions. By the 1970s, the government of Nigeria saw the need to develop its sports fraternity. The rise of policies capturing sports in the country promotes consciousness to sporting activities. This paper provides a comparison to the provision of sports in the UK and in Nigeria. It outlays aspects such as sports culture influence, relationship of government to sports organization. The paper states other critical aspects in relation to sports to the UK and Nigeria. Structures of the sports, Aims and professional development of careers have an implication. Aims of Sports Provision The aim of the United Kingdom sports provision is to protect existing facilities. The protection of sports facilities includes protection of buildings as well as playing fields. The Nigeria government through its Sports management organization protect buildings and other facilities (Chadwick & Arthur, 2008). The other important aim of the UK sports and the organization managing sports activities in the UK is the provision of new sports facilities. The Nigerian and the UK sports aims are to provide high quality sports facilities to communities (Girginov, 2008). The other aspect of importance for the governments of UK and Nigeria is to enhance accessibility and the improvement of the quality of sports facilities. Funding Funding is the most important aspect in the sports fraternity. Both the UK and Nigeria have various strategies in ensuring funds reach athletes and their activities. Since sporting activities build the reputation of countries, the UK fund sports activities at every level (Green, & Houlihan, 2008). The government of the United Kingdom offer sports funds utilizing two perspectives. Individuals of group may receive sports funds in the country through solicitation or open application. (Conrad, 2011) In respect to solicited funds, the government offers funds to bodies and institutions with an agenda of improving sports in the community. Through the open application framework of the policy, the government offers policies to organizations in respect to their merit. The most important policy for UK is the “Sports Eligibility Policy”. According to the state, it is upon the UK sports to determine the eligibility of athletes to receive funding. The aspects of the eligibility relates on the influence of teams, nationality of athletes, and the rights of individuals to work in the UK (Girginov, 2008). For Nigeria, the government is the leading proprietor for sporting activities. The government recognizes sports as important contributor to her economy. In respect to funding sports in Nigeria, the government has formulated various sports policies. The funding strategies of the government of Nigeria involve the participation of the private sector. Considering the private sector partnerships the government develops various marketing strategies. Through sports marketing, the government of Nigeria has been able to exchange items with consumers for funds (Akinduijre, 1992). In respect to policies of the government, the “Vision 20.2020” provides the basis for the government to stimulate domestic and foreign trade. The National Sports Policy further provides standards for the development of fitness training and competitive sports frameworks (Millward, 2011). Sports Structure In respect to the provision of sports activities in the UK, UK Sports carries the banner. The responsibility of the organization is to manage and coordinate activities at the sporting fraternity. The performance of the business relies on its C.E.O for service delivery and Administration. The C.E.O ensures that adequate funding reaches to athletes in time. The other sectors to the completion of the completion of the structure of the organization include the position of the business support (Culley & Pascoe, 2009). Other players to the structure of UK sports include the office of communications, international relations and the directorate of performance. In relation to the sports structure in Nigeria, the body lies under the leadership of the Minister of sports. Dabbed as the National Sports Commission, the body consists of six departments. Some of the departments in operation in the sporting fraternity include the National Sports & Elite athlete department. This department concentrates of Elite athletes as well as coaching (Onifade, 1993). The other department for the organization is the grassroots Sports Departments. This department deals with developing talent in colleges and schools. The other departments that make up the National Sports Commission include Sports Research, planning and documentation, the marketing department, procurement as well as sports medicine. Culture Influences Perhaps the culture of sports has had an implication on the business aspects of Sports in the UK. It is true that the culture of the people of Britain has an influence on the provision of sports in the country. In retrospect, one can state that most of the popular sports on the globe have its origin in the United Kingdom. By the year 1863, football had become a famous sport in the United Kingdom (Walmsley, 2012). The other sports that relates to the culture of the people of the United Kingdom include squash, badminton, hockey and tennis. The influences of sports culture in the UK have influenced the development of the Department for Culture Media and Sports. The functions of the department are to meet the needs of its strategic priorities. The strategic priority groups include children and communities. In the provision of sports services, the department concentrates the provision of internet, broadcasting as well as creative industries (Walmsley, 2012). In respect to Nigeria, the sports culture of the country has an influence in the development of policies. The culture of sports in Nigeria begins from the time when there was inter clan games. During this informal era of sports in Nigeria, villagers viewed sports as recreational activities. However, come 1910, formal sports became part of the Nigerian culture (Akinduijre, 1992). In the preceding years, the people of Nigeria have witnessed its members compete in world stages. The change in culture in respect to sports for the people of Nigeria, forced the government to develop policies. Sports were not the usual recreational activity; it was a large source of income and employment. The change of culture of the people of Nigeria had an impact in the development of the National Sports Commission Relationship of Government In the United Kingdom, the government utilizes UK Sports for the basis of accountability with other players. The government has for years invested over £100 million. This value satisfies the needs of athletes and other developmental agendas (Dilys & Gargasas, 2014). The government of the United Kingdom through its departments provides public funding to sports organization. These organizations receive public funding through the exchequer and through the National lottery. The provisions of funding by the state to various sports organization assist the government professionalize sports. The provision of funding further assists the government in the development of sports at grassroots levels. Public investment in sports has led to fostering of various commitment frameworks by organizations. Organizations receiving public funding in the UK need to consider aspects such as race equity (Dilys & Gargasas, 2014). Institutions, bodies or organizations that do not consider policy aspects on discrimination risk losing their funding. In Nigeria, Sports has evolved to be one of the important income earners for the government. It is understood that organizations with interests in sports have their stake. However it is also true that the government has specific interests to protect. The influence of the Nigerian government relates to its administration of sports and physical education. The government of Nigeria through its National Sports managing body concentrates on the development of sports in elementary, junior and other levels. The government of Nigeria coordinates and integrates other organization in the development of Sports in the country. The government further cooperates with other organizations in the development of sports. The government further conducts research on sports. It is has been the function of the Nigerian government to maintain sports centres. Participation Research as presented by the National Lottery of the UK; indicate that 50% of the population participate in sporting activities. According to their report of 2014, 15.6 million individuals aged over 16years participate in sporting activities on a weekly basis. The research further reveals that 52% of adults do not participate in Sports. In respect to the gender of sports individuals, over 40% of men participate in sports (Girginov, 2008). Women represent over 30% of those participating in sporting activities. Age is also a factor in the participation of individuals in sports activities. The research presented by the body, reveal that 16-25year olds represent 54.5% of individuals participating in sports. In regard to ethnicity and race, there is an increase in participation of black and minority groups in sports. In respect to the disabled groups in the society, their participation represents 17.8% level. The majority of the population Nigeria participating in sports represents the young generation. Over 60% of the population in Nigeria participating in sports are in institutions and in schools. The country has its share of gold medals and trophies from various commonwealth games and Olympics (Akinduijre, 1992). Women participation in sports has been instrumental in the development of sports in the country. The women squads have been instrumental in spicing women’s football in the world cup. The low participation in sports is attributed to several aspects. The country has a high inaccessibility rate to functional education. The country faces the challenge of lack accessible healthcare facilities. Other influences to participation in sports include joblessness and increase in drug addiction. References Green, M, & Houlihan, B 2008. Comparative Elite Sports Development : Systems, Structures And Public Policy, Amsterdam Millward, P 2011. Sports Policy and Development: An introduction, Managing Leisure, 16, 1, pp. 77-78. Chadwick, S. and Arthur, D. 2008. International Cases in the Business of Sports. Butterworth-Heinemann:United Kingdom. Conrad, M. 2011. The Business of Sports, vol Communication series. Routledge. Girginov, V 2008. Management Of Sports Development, Amsterdam: Elsevier/Butterworth-Heinemann. Walmsley, B 2012. Towards a balanced scorecard: A critical analysis of the Culture and Sports Evidence (CASE) programme, Cultural Trends, 21, 4, pp. 325-334. Culley, P, & Pascoe, J 2009. Sports Facilities And Technologies, New York: Routledge. Onifade, A 1993. Operative Goals of Interuniversity Athletics: Perceptions of Athletics Administrators in Nigeria, Journal Of Sports Management, 7, 3, pp. 263-270. Akinduijre, I 1992. Sports as a Manifestation of Cultural Heritage in Nigeria, International Review For The Sociology Of Sports, 27, 1, pp. 27-36. Dilys, M, & Gargasas, A 2014. Structural Business Model Based on Cooperation between Sports Organizations and Sponsors, Engineering Economics, 25, 1, pp. 94-102. Read More