Sports Marketing Special Session: Cricket in the North: The Impact of Sports Participation and Sponsorship on Immigrant Social Inclusion and Fostering Welcoming Communities: An Abstract

Abstract

Sport has the ability to both produce and counter racism, and should therefore be studied and understood more fully (Carrington and McDonald 2001). Previous studies have demonstrated the role that sport and recreation can play in the settlement and social inclusion of immigrants (e.g., Lee and Funk 2011; Kim et al. 2016; Taylor 2004; Vancouver Foundation 2012). When it comes to community sport and recreation opportunities, immigrants are largely expected to fit in to mainstream dominant culture activities, often having limited roles in the organization or training (Forde et al. 2015). Forde et al. (2015) call for more “structured opportunities whereby native-born residents could learn about the physical culture of newcomers in ways that promoted interculturalism, thereby increasing opportunities for mutual learning and cross-cultural understanding” (p. 137). Social inclusion is a process with participants as active agents within it (Ponic and Frisby 2010). The participatory dimension of the Ponic and Frisby’s (2010) social inclusion framework points to the need for opportunities for newcomers to share their skills and knowledge and to be recognized for their contributions. In the Northern Ontario communities of North Bay, Timmins, Thunder Bay and Sault Ste. Marie, cricket clubs organized and run by immigrants and community organizers have sprung up. Typically, players of all ages, genders, and abilities are welcomed to play. Occasionally, tournaments are held and sponsored by immigrant-owned businesses. The sport not only tends to attract immigrants from Britain and British Commonwealth countries, where cricket is popular, but also provides opportunities for native-born citizens to try out the sport and receive instruction from newcomers. Using the social inclusion framework developed by Ponic and Frisby (2010) as our guide, we surveyed 54 players and conducted interviews with 10 players, coaches, organizers, sponsors, and community partners in order to ascertain their perspectives on the impact of the cricket teams on newcomer social inclusion and the recognition of immigrant-owned local businesses. We found evidence to suggest that participation in cricket increases newcomer players’ sense of social inclusion and that players perceive gains in social capital as a result of their participation. Sponsorship or the lack thereof has an impact on players’ sense of social inclusion. The benefits to immigrant-owned businesses of sponsoring community cricket teams are limited by the existing low profile of the sport in Northern Ontario. The cricket teams and tournaments provide limited opportunities for interculturalism, mutual learning, and cross-cultural understanding but these opportunities are expected to grow in the future.