Sports partnerships through 'Sports Hubs' in New Zealand

Abstract

There has been an emergence of ‘sports hubs’ across New Zealand. While these new models of community sports delivery, through shared sporting facilities and services across multiple sport clubs, have been heralded as successful partnerships in the sport and recreation sector, they have received little attention within the academic literature. This study attempts to conceptualise this partnership model by drawing on the previous literature on sport partnerships (e.g., Babiak and Thibault, 2009; Dowling, Robinson and Washington, 2013; MacLean, Cousens and Barnes, 2011; Thibault, Kikulis and Frisby, 2003). In particular, Hall et al.’s (2003) framework ‘multiple dimensions of organisational capacity’ is then employed to examine the benefits and risks associated with the formation of sports hubs. Methodologically, this study employed a case study approach through documentary evidence and interviews with practitioners from two sports hubs in New Zealand. The initial findings suggest that the partnership model of sports hubs enhances particular dimensions of organisational capacity yet compromises others for both the hub entity and the participating sport clubs. In particular, an increase in ‘infrastructure capacity’, enhanced by the shared modern facilities, was found to be central to the benefits for them while at the same time the shared spaces created challenges in maintaining ‘organisational cultures’. In this sense, the success of the partnership needs to be assessed with respect to the needs and priorities of each involved individual sport club.