Sport Mega-Events, Security and COVID-19: Securing the Football World

This book examines the security challenges of the 2020 UEFA European Football Championship (Euro 2020), a multi-city, multi-country event that took place in the midst of the COVID-19 pandemic. It explores the constructions, meanings, and perceptions of security in the efforts to secure the event, arguing that Euro 2020 is a powerful case through which to understand wider security governance and security-related processes in present-day societies. The book assesses the precautionary logic and transnational knowledge transfer processes that guide security constructions surrounding SMEs in an uncertain and threat-conscious world, and captures the dramatic moments in which COVID-19 transitioned into a security threat with severe impacts on the world of football and well beyond.

Format: Paperback / softback
Length: 166 pages
Publication date: 29 January 2024
Publisher: Taylor & Francis Ltd

This book delves into the contemporary challenges of security at sports mega-events (SMEs), with a specific focus on the 2020 UEFA European Football Championship (Euro 2020), which was postponed to 2021 due to the impact of the COVID-19 pandemic. As the third-largest SME in the global sporting calendar, Euro 2020 presented unique challenges and complexities, particularly in the context of a global health crisis.

Drawing on a comprehensive range of sources, including stakeholder interviews, policy documents, media reports, and existing research, the book explores the constructions, meanings, and perceptions of security in the efforts to secure this football mega-event. It argues that Euro 2020 serves as a powerful case study for understanding wider security governance and security-related processes in contemporary societies, which are increasingly preoccupied with notions of security, safety, and risk.

The book assesses the precautionary logic and transnational knowledge transfer processes that guide security constructions surrounding SMEs in an uncertain and threat-conscious world. It captures the dramatic moments when COVID-19 transitioned from a health concern to a security threat with severe impacts on the world of football and beyond. Sport Mega-Events, Security and COVID-19 contributes to existing debates in the sociology of football and sport, offering a critical understanding of security and safety in the modern world. It provides insights into the changing "new normalities of security" between 9/11 and the COVID-19 pandemic through the lens of global sport.

This book is of interest to professionals and academics in sport management, event management, football, security studies, policing, risk and crisis management, sociology of sport, sociology of surveillance, and political science. It offers valuable insights and perspectives on the complex challenges and opportunities associated with organizing and securing sports mega-events in the context of a rapidly evolving global landscape.

Weight: 320g
Dimension: 234 x 156 (mm)
ISBN-13: 9781032192758