Revisiting sport management journals in the Academic Journal Guide 2024: no improvement … this time?

Abstract

The Academic Journal Guide (AJG) 2024 was recently released. There is no change in the evaluation of sport management journals. Yet, Scelles [(2023). Sport management journals should be rated higher in journal ranking lists! Towards a better international recognition of the field. Managing Sport and Leisure, Advance online publication. https://doi.org/10.1080/23750472.2023.2216212] argued that sport management journals should be rated higher in journal ranking lists. This commentary aims to offer potential reasons for the stability in the rankings for sport management journals since 2015. It identifies that one reason may be an unchallenged legacy of thought, which arises by the absence of a sport management expert sitting on the AJG Scientific Committee. Therefore, the commentary calls for the addition of a sport management expert to the Committee. This would contribute to a better international recognition of sport management which would, in turn, enhance business education and research.