Abstract
Stacking refers to the assignment to particular playing positions in sport based on assumed versus actual skills and capabilities. Originating in the 1960s, the concept emerged from a basic sociological curiosity about why particular playing positions in sport were consistently selected for leadership roles such as team captain, coach or manager. However, over time, the wider socio-cultural implications of the phenomenon, including how they related to racial politics, became apparent. Ultimately, the analysis of stacking analysis has been conducted in relation to three interrelated dimensions: leadership recruitment; racial stereotyping and segregation; and, more recently mediated sport stacking. Notably, while the scientific study of stacking receives less attention today, more than half a century after it was first conceptualised, it remains one of the longest standing research traditions within sport studies.