Beyond the Stadium

How Sports Change the World

By: Andrew Bertoli

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Paperback | 3 March 2026

At a Glance

Paperback
230 Pages

Dimensions(cm)
22.86 x 15.24 x 1.35

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There are two popular and competing viewpoints on sports. Many consider them a mere distraction from important social and political problems. Others champion sports as a powerful force for good: teaching character, promoting peace, and encouraging racial and gender equality. Andrew Bertoli shows that these dominant perspectives underestimate the full extent to which sports impact modern life. Sports can worsen relations between nations, divide countries internally, and disadvantage individuals from underprivileged backgrounds. Sports can also, however, build social capital, make people feel more connected, and provide participants with physical and cognitive benefits. Much depends on how people approach sports, both at the individual and societal levels. This book highlights some of the profound and startling ways that sports and politics have interacted throughout recent history, including: how the Olympic torch relay was started by the Nazis and reflected Hitler's ambition to dominate Europe; the twentieth-century feminist movement to keep women out of the Olympics and the motivations of the female sports leaders who led it; how Michael Jordan's determination to stay out of politics during his career may have made him the most politically impactful athlete in history. Bertoli's insightful analysis challenges many conventional views while also helping readers understand how they can better utilize sports for themselves, their families, and their communities.

Industry Reviews

"Even the highest praise fails to accord proper credit to the brilliance of this book. Mastering the vast literature on the sociology of sports and combining it with an equally impressive command of key political and social phenomena-such as nationalism, dictatorship, race, and gender-Andrew Bertoli has forged a gem of a book that will become a classic in the social sciences." - Andrei S. Markovits, University of Michigan "Sports pervade modern life, and yet whether they affect politics and society remains poorly understood. Andrew Bertoli addresses this lacuna by revealing when sports help or harm the world. This book is necessary reading for all scholars of politics and society, sports fans and non-sports fans alike." - James Druckman, University of Rochester "Bertoli's Beyond the Stadium is a brilliant book, full of new and surprising insights into the ways global sports and politics intersect. Unquestionably one of the most important contributions on this still understudied subject, the book is destined to gain a wide audience among political scientists, athletes, sports fans, and the broader public." - Lars Rensmann, University of Passau, co-author of Gaming the World: How Sports are Reshaping Global Politics and Culture

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