The autonomy of sports: negotiating boundaries between sports governance and government policy in the Danish welfare state

Abstract

The current liberal Danish government's public health programme (2002–2010) specifies a wish for social involvement and cooperation between the public and the voluntary sector. Governmental conception is that health political subjects and social issues are a challenge which the community solidarity based non-governmental sports association should take the responsibility for, for example, by offering comprehensive options for people with no tradition for physical activity. This governance of sports is articulated in Danish sport science as destroying the autonomy of sports. This paper will, in a sociological way, discuss the enabling and constraining possibilities of these political relations. Themes such as the autonomy of sports organizations/associations will be included in order to discuss the possible significance in the future of a partnership between the public and the voluntary sector. The question is whether the governance of sports through partnership formation is a specific strengthening of state control. In line with Foucauldian and Eliasian thinking (Kaspersen 2008 Kaspersen, L.B. 2008. Danmark i verden, Copenhagen: Hans Reitzels Forlag. [Google Scholar]) it will be highlighted that sport always has been part of, and always could be seen as, a (body) political scenario. There is a changing figuration and relation between autonomy versus heteronomy of stakeholders in sports governance. Sport political issues are not new phenomena. The new thing is the technology unfolding in political involvement. By doing a comparative analytical historical exemplification, the paper focuses upon the fact that the concept of shared responsibility and interdependence between sports and society/state has a long historical tradition in Denmark.