The Contested Terrain of Alcohol Sponsorship of Sport and Social Policy in New Zealand

Abstract

This thesis investigates the effects, consequences and contested terrain emerging from alcohol sponsorship of sport in New Zealand. Drawing from the 2010 New Zealand Law Commission report addressing the alcohol issue in New Zealand, this research examined the sport sponsorship debate in relation to one specific recommendation calling for a ban on alcohol sponsorship of sport as part of a three stage process; (1) implementation of regulations based on Loi Evin in France, where sport sponsorship and advertising is banned from sporting arenas and visual mediums; (2) prohibition on alcohol advertising where 10% of participants are under the legal drinking age, including sporting arenas and (3) the eventual complete removal of alcohol sponsorship of sport. Located within a cultural studies framework and employing a qualitative, multi-method approach including document analysis and interviews with key stakeholders, the results highlight the contested terrain of varying interests within particular sectors of New Zealand. Three key findings emerged: (1) alcohol companies have a long history of sponsoring sport and became more powerful following the banning of tobacco sponsorship of sport; (2) the issue of alcohol sponsorship of sport is a contested terrain where particular interest groups (e.g. alcohol companies, sport organisations, alcohol regulatory bodies and concerned citizens) offer different, often competing, perspectives (3) While many interest groups argue that alcohol sponsorship is the ‘lifeblood’ of sport there are both New Zealand and international examples (including Loi Evin in France) that demonstrate that sports need not be dependent on alcohol funding for survival. Overall, the study highlights how public policy issues serve as contested terrains of political, economic and cultural debate.