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Sports Management heralds a new era of business in India where entertainment, passion and business meet
Apr 12, 2013

India has today not only evolved superstars of the global sports world, be it Sachin Tendulkar, M S Dhoni, Mary Kom, Sania Mirza, Saina Nehwal, Leander Paes or Vishwanathan Anand, but also some of the biggest sporting events of the world like the Indian Premier League, Cricket World Cups, Commonwealth Games etc. What has not evolved exponentially is the expertise to manage these. Confederation of Indian Industry (CII), organized a “Sport Management Capacity Building Session” in association with the Australian Trade Commission and Deakin University, Australia to take advantage of the decades of experiences Australia has in this field.

“Australia is not only a great sporting nation, but also the greatest sports management nation,” said Mr Patrick Kearins, Trade Commissioner, Australian Trade Commission, “The concept of sports management has matured over the past 30 years in Australia with dedicated and educated professionals in the field. Indian sports industry can benefit from Australia’s experience and expertise to develop their own industry and talent.”

India lacks in almost every field when considering sports management. A NSDC (National Skill Development Centre) Skills Gap study in the sports sector found that by the year 2022, India would need:

·  Sports coaches - 364,745
·  PE teachers 976,938
·  Fitness trainers 363,605
·  Skills (physio, medicine, psycho etc.) for player development 366,533
·  Skills (commentator, scorekeeper, referee etc.) for matches 78,291 per skill

To increase Sports Management expertise, one has to begin from the grassroots perception. In Australia parents look at sports management as a prestigious industry unlike India where the understanding of sports has yet to go beyond playing in the highest levels of a game. However, the landscape predominantly occupied by cricket has been changing rapidly with hockey, tennis, golf, football starting to see similar transition. “That transition will require a large group of professionals, people who may not play at the high levels, but who know what it is to deliver quality when it comes to management of talent, sponsorships and its value, understanding sports science and sports marketing etc.,” Mr. Kearins said.

Talking about Australia as an education and sports destination, Mr. Patrick Kearins added, “Despite population as big as Greater Mumbai, Australia is one of the most successful sporting nations in the world, not just in playing it but in sports management that evolved in the 1970s with the creation of the Australian Institute of Sports. The model we pioneered there has become so successful that it has been adopted by the world.”

Dr. Indu Shahani Former Sheriff of Mumbai and Principal H R College of Commerce & Economics said, “With 50% Indians being less than 25 years of age, India is the youngest nation in the world. And the youth today want more options, want to follow their passion. Cricket is a religion in India but where are we training people to join the business. One of their greatest enthusiasms of the youth rests in sports. They have been looking for an option to take up sports as a profession but the Indian education system has not been able to provide them that.”

She went on to add, “I have been observing the IPL intensely to see the number of jobs it has thrown up be it in advertising, media, legal department, managing sports stars, events, equipment, fashion and retailing, marketing and promotion etc. It is huge, innovative and requires creativity in every sphere. Sports management is a big opportunity and bound to be the next big thing, the next big employer in India.”

According to her the way forward is to not just rely on the university system because the many regulations take years for any new course to get off the ground, but to begin by short term certificate courses that can then expand to diploma and later degree courses. “The demand for professional education is huge, and supply is decades behind fulfilling them. India needs to understand that the way ahead is not just through the university system but we have to move towards academia-industry partnerships and internationalization.”

Prof David Shilbury, Professor and Foundation Chair of Sports Management, Deakin University, highlighted the similarity between Indians and Australians. He said, “Sports, especially cricket is a tangible touch point where Indians and Australians connect. However India is far behind when it comes to sports management. Back in 1990 when we started we were in the same position as you are in right now - the sports market was minimal and so was the talent. Today we lead the world.”

The thing to consider, he said, is about how one can commence sports management programs in the country and what the industry can do to create that. He believes that there is a need for a long term strategy and it is important for the industry and the academic world to be connected.


12th April, 2013, Mumbai.

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