Background and objective of the project
Club sport plays an important role within public debates on integration policy and in the self-image of sports associations. Football clubs in particular succeed in winning over people with a migration background as active members and retaining them for the long term. The few empirical studies that have been conducted indicate that these members are also relatively well integrated socially in football clubs. However, no meaningful data and findings are available for the clubs of the Swiss Football Association.
The study aims to assess the potential performance of Swiss football clubs with regard to the social integration of members with a migration background from an individual perspective. From an organisational perspective, integration-promoting practices at club and team level (in the sense of "good practice" examples leading to recommendations for action) will be identified and relevant conditions analysed.
Theoretical background
The theoretical background of the research project is the concept of social integration. According to Hartmut Esser (2004), the focus here is on the integration and the social capacity of individuals to act in various contexts or sub-areas of the (host) society.
Esser distinguishes four dimensions of social integration: Culturation means the acquisition of social and cultural knowledge. Placement comprises the access and adoption of positions and rights. Interaction means functioning (interethnic) social relations and the social acceptance that arises from them. Identification refers to subjectively perceived belonging.
Methodological approach
In order to analyse the individual perspective, around 40 football clubs are selected on the basis of criteria (German and French-speaking Switzerland, proportion of people with a migration background, integration efforts). A number of clubs that have participated in the Swiss Football Association's "Together - Football unites" project will be selected to evaluate the project. In addition to the club and team structures (via appropriate officials), the club members of selected teams are interviewed (in writing on site) and the degree of social integration is recorded.
Subsequently, qualitative case studies will be conducted in 10-20 football clubs to analyse the organisational perspective. Based on interviews (individually, in groups) with selected actors (board members, coaches, members with a migration background), the main aim is to analyse beneficial practices at team and club level with regard to their relevance for social integration. In addition, the perspective of "integration through sport" will also be examined.
Literature
Adler Zwahlen, J., Nagel, S. & Schlesinger, T. (2018). Analyzing social integration of young immigrants in sports clubs. European Journal for Sport and Society, 15, 22-42. https://doi.org/10.1080/16138171.2018.1440950
Adler Zwahlen, J., Nagel, S. & Schlesinger, T. (2018). Langfristiger Lernprozess. Integration von Menschen mit Migrationshintergrund in Sportvereinen [Long term learning process. Integration of people with migration background in sports clubs]. TANGRAM, Bulletin der Eidgenössischen Kommission gegen Rassismus, 41, 83-86.
Esser, H. (2004). Does the "new" immigration require a "new" theory of intergenerational integration? International Migration Review, 38, 1126-1159. https://doi.org/10.1111/j.1747-7379.2004.tb00231.x
