This comprehensive collection focuses on sports culture and its relationship to institutions in the surrounding society. The editorsrs" introduction describes the many ways that sport as a meritocratic contest may be diverted from meritocratic practices by the powerful social structures within which it is embedded. Sections focus on political economy, violence, the media, education, politics, fans and community, and the body. These readings address a variety of compelling and contentious issues: What is the role of sports in educational institutions? How are sports linked to politics? To what extent have the media transformed sports? How have sports influenced our cultural images of the body and physical health? In what ways do fans and social community influence sports? Augmenting the primary readings, the collection also presents engaging and provocative journalistic essays that complement the scholarly analyses with insightful discussions that spotlight key issues. Section introductions from the editors connect the readings to relevant theoretical perspectives for understanding the sociology of sports: new institutionalism, cultural hegemony, social capital, symbolic interaction, and cultural construction. Providing a cohesive foundation for a wide range of readings,Sport, Power, and Societyis a must-have resource for understanding the current issues and debates surrounding the interactions of sport and society. Contents Introduction: Sport as a Model of Meritocracy Part One. Raiding the Public Treasury: The Political Economy of Professional Sports 1. Introduction 2. Public Dollars, Private Stadiums, Kevin J. Delaney and Rick Eckstein 3. Rooting the Home Team: Why the Packers Won't Leave-and Why the Browns Did, David Morris and Daniel Kraker 4. America's Fastest Growing Sport, Brian O'Keefe and Julie Schosseri 5. May the Best Team Win: Making Baseball Competitive, Andrew Zimbalist 6. Building a Mini Metropolis Known as the US Open, Bill Pennington Part Two. The Faustian Bargain: Big-Time Sports and the Media 1. Introduction 2. Money, Myth and the Big Match: The Political Economy of the Sports Media, David Rowe 3. Losing Control of the Ball, The political economy of football and the media in Australia, Murray Phillips and Brett Hutchins 4. The Global Sport Mass Media Oligopoly, Alan Law, Jean Harvey, and Stuart Kemp 5. Football, Television, and the Supreme Court: How a Decision 20 Years Ago Brought Commercialization the World Of College Sports, Welch Suggs 6. Marketers Are Joining the Varsity Stuart Elliott Part Three. True Love or a Marriage of Convenience: Sports and Education 1. Introduction 2. Who's Playing College Sports? Trends in Participation, John Cheslock 3. The Game of Life, James L. Schulman and William G. Bowen 4. Race, Cultural Capital, and the Educational Effects of Participation in Sports, Tamela McNulty Eitle and David Eitle 5. High School Football: Deep in the Heart of South Texas, Douglas FoleyBake Sales and Trash Pickup Help College Teams Stay Afloat, Teddy Kider Part Four. The Power of Athletics: Sports and Politics 1. Introduction 2. Where are the Jocks for Justice?, Kelly Candaele and Peter Dreier 3. Sport, Masculinity, and Black Cultural Resistance, Ben Carrington 4. Televised Sport, Masculinist Moral Capital, and Support for the Invasion of Iraq, Carl Stempel 5. Gay Games or Gay Olympics? Implications for Lesbian Inclusion, Helen Jefferson Lenskyj 6. Argentina's Left-Wingers, Leslie Ray 7. Carlos Delgado Stands Up to War, Dave Zirin Part Five. Socializing the Anatomy: Body Culture and Sport 1. Introduction 2. Making Sense of Muscle: The Body Experiences of Collegiate Women Athletes, Molly George 3. Managing Bodily Capital, Loic Wacquant 4. Hindu Nationalism, Cu