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On the 50th anniversary of the ISSA and IRSS, a key scholar in the development of the sociology of sport in Latin America, Miguel Cornejo, reflects on the trajectory, challenges, and future opportunities for the field in light of recent organizational and disciplinary developments. It is noted that much development of the sociology of sport in Latin America can be credited to the inclusion of a “sociology of sport and society” Working Group at the 1999 Congress of the Latin America Association of Sociology; developments at subsequent meetings of that organization were solidified in 2007 with the formation of the Latin American Association of Sociocultural Studies in Sport (ALESDE). Development in the field of inquiry has been complex as Latin America is divided, not only along national borders, but by diverse and distinct local group and ethnic cultures. Early research in the sociology of sport in Latin America focused on football and much was influenced by the work of Elias, Bourdieu, and Dunning. Beyond figurational approaches, diverse theoretical vantage points have had application, including those taking functionalist approaches, using conflict theory and ethnography, and the adoption of symbolic approaches. An ongoing challenge has been to transact in the scholarly community where English is the dominant language. ALESDE has played an important role, mirroring development of more localized professional societies from around the world focused on the sociology of sport, in enabling the voices of Latin American scholars to be part of the larger disciplinary conversation. [ABSTRACT FROM PUBLISHER]

On the 50th anniversary of the ISSA and IRSS, Wanderley Marchi Júnior, a key foundational scholar in the development of the sociology of sport in Latin America, considers the trajectory of inquiry and the unique challenges confronting Latin American scholars in mounting socio-cultural inquiry about sport. In assessing the development of the field, it is noted that the relatively new academic discipline of sociology of sport grew from its seating in physical education to incorporate understandings from fields such as education, history, sociology, and economics in a necessary ‘academic oxygenation’. The present challenges for scholarly development are regarded as standing at a crossroads of critical and Marxist perspectives, with studies in Brazil being influenced by the work of Elias and Bourdieu, and empirical, statistical and analytical research traditions from the United States. It is suggested that the future for sociology in sport in Brazil and Latin America, where the discipline has developed in three identifiable stages, can be viewed with considerable optimism. In the third stage, the sociology of sport has been expanded by reconstructing its legitimacy through increased intersectional analysis that bridges the knowledge and understanding across the social sciences and humanities. [ABSTRACT FROM PUBLISHER]