Sport, Tourism and National Identities

The role of both sport and tourism in the (re)creation and (re)presentation of national identities is well established, yet relatively little work has critically explored the inter-relationship between sport, tourism and the creation and maintenance of national identities. Despite the advances of globalization, the nation continues to be an important part of both sport and tourism discourse and offers fertile ground for the exploration of identities in postmodern society. The chapters in this collection consider the significance of important sports events and how this is understood in relation to the collective identities of some countries. Authors outline some of the ways in which the nation matters, and consider how and why national identities are important in contemporary sport tourism. This book was originally published as a special issue of the Journal of Sport & Tourism.

Dr John Harris is Reader in International Sport & Event Management at Glasgow Caledonian University, Scotland. He is author of Rugby Union and Globalization (Palgrave Macmillan) and numerous articles focusing on sport, tourism and national identities in Wales.

1. Introduction: The enduring importance of national identities in sport and tourism 2. Flying the flag for the En-ger-land: The Sun's (re)construction of English identity during the 2010 World Cup 3. Reimaging a nation: South Africa and the 2010 FIFAWorld Cup 4. The sponsor-global event relationship: a business-to-business tourism marketing relationship? 5. Transcending imaginations through football participation and narratives of the other: Haitian national identity in the Dominican Republic 6. Conclusion: From London and Llanwrtyd to Glasgow and Gleneagles