Operationalising the health-promoting sports club framework for club managers: a qualitative study
Through a qualitative study involving 22 international experts, this paper develops a theoretical framework and 42 practical intervention strategies to guide sports club managers in operationalizing health promotion within their organizations.
Original paper licensed under CC BY 4.0 (https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/4.0/). This is an AI-generated explanation of the paper below. It is not written or endorsed by the authors. For technical accuracy, refer to the original paper. Read full disclaimer
Imagine sports clubs as giant, bustling playgrounds where millions of people gather every week to run, jump, and play. For a long time, we've thought these places were automatically healthy because moving your body is good for you. But just like a playground can have broken swings or sticky candy machines that make kids sick, sports clubs can sometimes have hidden problems—like unhealthy food, too much pressure to win, or even unsafe environments. Scientists call the idea of fixing these places "Health Promotion." It's not just about telling people to eat better; it's about changing the whole "ecosystem" of the club so that making healthy choices is easy, fun, and built into the rules.
At the center of this ecosystem sits a special person: the sports club manager. Think of them as the captain of the ship or the conductor of an orchestra. They aren't necessarily the ones playing the sport, but they decide the rules, manage the money, hire the coaches, and set the vibe. Until now, we knew these managers were important, but we didn't have a clear instruction manual for how they could turn their club into a true "health-promoting" hub. This paper is all about creating that manual.
The Big Mission: Giving Managers a Map
This study is like a massive brainstorming session with 22 experts from all over Europe—think of them as a "Dream Team" of scientists and sports leaders. They wanted to solve a tricky puzzle: How do we take the big, complicated theory of "Health-Promoting Sports Clubs" and turn it into a practical guide for the people actually running the clubs? They realized that while coaches and big sports federations had some guidance, the managers were left in the dark.
The team didn't just guess; they met five times over virtual calls, argued, refined, and polished their ideas until everyone agreed. Their goal was to define exactly what a "Health-Promoting Sports Club Manager" is and to build a step-by-step ladder showing how any manager can climb from doing the bare minimum to running a world-class healthy club.
The New Definition: Who is the Manager?
First, the experts gave the manager a new, super-specific title: the Health-Promoting Sports Club Manager (HPSCM). They defined this person as anyone—paid or volunteer—who runs the show and actively uses their skills to make health a core part of the club's DNA. It's not just about keeping the lights on; it's about making sure the club's policies, strategies, and daily actions all point toward better physical, mental, and social health for everyone involved.
They also updated the definition of the club itself. A "Health-Promoting Sports Club" isn't just a place where people play; it's a non-profit organization that works with everyone inside (players, coaches) and outside (local doctors, city councils) to make health happen.
The Ladder of Progress: Four Steps to the Top
One of the coolest parts of the paper is the "Ladder of Progress." The experts realized that not every club starts at the same place. Some are just dipping their toes in the water, while others are diving deep. They created four distinct stages to show how a manager can grow:
- The Passive Model (The "It Just Happens" Stage): Here, the manager thinks, "If people play sports, they'll be healthy, so I don't need to do anything special." They focus only on safety and winning. Health is seen as a lucky side effect, not a goal.
- The Active Model (The "We're Doing Good" Stage): The manager starts to see that the club is a great tool for health. They might host a fun event for non-athletes or talk about inclusion, but they aren't changing the core rules of the club yet.
- The Transmissive Model (The "One-Off Event" Stage): The manager realizes they can solve specific problems. They might bring in an outside expert for a one-day workshop on healthy eating or run a short 6-to-8-week program. It's helpful, but it's like a band-aid; it doesn't change the whole system.
- The Comprehensive Approach (The "Total Transformation" Stage): This is the big leagues. Health is woven into everything the club does. Every decision, from buying equipment to planning the budget, considers health. The manager leads a long-term strategy where the whole club culture is about well-being, not just winning.
The Toolkit: 42 Ways to Make It Happen
To help managers climb this ladder, the team didn't just give them a theory; they built a massive toolkit containing 42 specific strategies. Imagine a giant instruction book with 42 different "moves" a manager can make.
These moves are organized around five big ideas from the famous "Ottawa Charter" (a global health plan), translated into sports-speak:
- Building Healthy Rules: Writing club policies that make health a priority, like ensuring everyone can afford to join or creating fair decision-making processes.
- Creating a Safe Space: Making sure the fields are safe, the equipment is good, and the environment is welcoming for everyone, including people with disabilities.
- Strengthening the Team: Working with neighbors, local hospitals, and schools to make sure the club is part of a bigger health network.
- Teaching Skills: Running workshops and sharing info so players and coaches know how to stay healthy.
- Reorienting Services: Helping members get back into the game after an injury or illness, making sure they feel supported, not just "fixed."
The paper suggests that by using these 42 strategies, managers can turn their clubs into places where healthy choices are the "easy choices."
What This Means (And What It Doesn't)
The authors are careful to say that this is a guidebook, not a finished product. They haven't tested these 42 strategies in real clubs yet to see if they work perfectly. They are suggesting that this framework could be the key to unlocking the health potential of sports clubs. They admit that managers might be too busy or lack resources to do it all at once, which is why the "four stages" are so important—you don't have to jump to the top immediately.
In short, this paper hands the keys to the sports club managers. It tells them, "You are the captains of health in your community. Here is who you are, here is how you can grow your skills, and here are 42 tools to help you build a club where everyone thrives." It's a roadmap for turning the sports club from a simple place to play into a powerful engine for community health.
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