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MAN-20193 - Module Specification
Keele Business School
Faculty of Business, Law, Humanities & Social Sciences

For academic year: 2026/27 Last Updated: 17 March 2026

MAN-20193 - Governance and Ethics in Sports and Esports
Coordinator:
Lecture Time: See Timetable...
Level: Level 5
Credits: 30
Study Hours: 300
School Office: 01782 733094

Programme/Approved Electives for 2026/27

None

Available as a Free Standing Elective

No

Co-requisites

None

Prerequisites

None

Barred Combinations

None

Description for 2026/27

The Sports and Esports industries are both at different stages of their development, however ethics, integrity and governance are central, and reoccurring, themes within both. In this module, you will understand how both are governed and regulated, whether that is in sponsorship, doping, match fixing or financial regulation, whilst also consider the ethics behind sportswashing, greenwashing and sponsorship within both industries. This will come from applying governance and regulatory frameworks and theory to sports and esports, whilst also analysing topical cases within this space and comparing the approaches across countries.

Aims
This module aims to highlight how sports and esports are governed. Furthermore, it will highlight the importance of governance in both sports and esports, especially in a commercialised world.

Intended Learning Outcomes

critically discuss the importance of governance in sports and esports.: 1
analyse the critical role played by various members of the sports and esports ecosystem in governing their industries.: 1
critique a range of seminal and contemporary academic and whitepaper perspectives on governance in sports and esports to identify (in)effective governance and ethics.: 2
compare and contrast the governance perspectives across various countries, applied to specific sports and esports.: 2

Study hours

12 x 2 hour Lectures
12 x 2 hour Seminars
Lecture and seminar/tutorial preparation 44 hours
Private study (104 hours):
Independent reading on governance/ethics frameworks: 40 hours
Reviewing case studies and international governance examples: 32 hours
Engagement with KLE resources and videos: 20 hours
Reflection and follow-up study: 12 hours
Assignment preparation (104 hours):
Research for Assessment 1 (poster): 20 hours
Designing and producing Assessment 1 (poster): 20 hours
Research for Assessment 2 (presentation/report): 32 hours
Drafting, preparing slides or writing the report, and rehearsal/recording: 32 hours

School Rules

None

Description of Module Assessment

1: Poster weighted 50%
Poster presentation on the importance of governance in sports and esports
An individual A2 poster analysing the importance of governance in either sports or esports and the roles of key ecosystem actors. Students should provide the equivalent of approximately 500–700 words of content (text + visual explanation). Time expectation: approximately 20 hours of independent work (research, design, drafting).

2: Report weighted 50%
Individual Report
Individual comparative report (1,800–2,000 words) analysing governance and ethics approaches in two countries, using academic and applied resources. The report should highlight examples of good and poor governance and how these are addressed.

The University undertakes a continuous review of its teaching and research provision to ensure programmes are of a high quality and changes may be made to modules where it is necessary and reasonable to do so. Please be aware that minor changes to modules, such as a change to an individual assessment, can occur up until enrolment, although we endeavour to give you as much notice as possible of any changes. Details about the circumstance in which changes are made to programmes can be found in the Student Agreement, available at: https://www.keele.ac.uk/legalgovernancecompliance/governance/actcharterstatutesordinancesandregulations/studenttermsconditions/

Last Updated: 17 March 2026