***Please Note that this course is part of a pilot program that will be using Brightspace, UVM's new learning platform that's replacing Blackboard. Since only a limited number of courses will be piloting Brightspace this coming semester, you may have courses in Blackboard as well. For more information on Brightspace: go.uvm.edu/brightspace-pilot Sports are an increasingly central part of our globalized world. We see this in many ways: the building of new arenas and infrastructure, the multibillion-dollar expansion of professional sporting leagues, the increasingly lucrative nature of athletic content in broadcasting, the multimillion-dollar contracts signed by star athletes, the growing participation of children in organized sports, the emergence of virtual games and fantasy sports, and the changing nature of unstructured play, among many others. The significance of stadiums, infrastructure, and mega-events are also a key element of the race by urban sites worldwide to gain the title of ‘the global city.’ And the deep identification that many people have with sports teams and athletes tell us much about the continued importance of place in increasingly interconnected societies. This course looks at sports through a spatial lens, focusing specifically on the geographic concepts of place-making, urban/national/international development, and geopolitics. In particular we will explore the ways that affinities with sports teams are often a means to create and strengthen ties to specific regions and places, the centrality of mega-events and arena construction in the urbanization plans of many cities, and the ways in which sports and international competition can be a way of expressing political ideologies and positions. We will also look at a number of contemporary and ongoing issues in sports including struggles for justice and the world of sports in the midst of a global pandemic. Objectives: • To understand the contexts, histories, successes and challenges that lie behind some of the most popular and influential sporting traditions and events in the modern world • Demystifying and uncovering through course readings, class discussion and individual assignments the histories of particular sports in particular locations • Applying a specific theoretical lens introduced through the class to specific questions (e.g. using the ideas of gentrification, displacement and nation-building to examine the contested nature of the costs and benefits of hosting events like the Olympics or building football stadiums) Texts: All course readings will be made available on the course Blackboard site

The course consists of reading assigned scholarly articles, viewing linked video clips, reading the course modules, participating in an online discussion board and writing a final paper. Assessment is based on your demonstrated knowledge of the readings, contributions to the discussion board, and completion of the final essay. Due to the intensive nature of this course, I strongly recommend that students keep up with the readings and indeed even pre-read upcoming readings if at all possible. Some of the readings are from blogs and popular press and are thus relatively short and accessible. Some of the more scholarly articles are however considerably longer and more complex. I recommend reading them ahead of time as much as possible and to pace yourself throughout the week so that you are not left with an unmanageable amount of work at any one point in each week. While participant's individual work habits and tendencies will differ, here is a rough outline of what you may expect to spend on different elements of the course: • 5-7 hours per week on assigned readings and modules • 2-5 hours per week on video clips and links • 3-5 hours per week for discussions and journals • 6-10 hours in total for the final assignment

Evaluation Reading Journal (6 x 6% each) 36% Audience Paper 15% Discussion Board (6 x 4% each) 24% Final Paper 25%