Recent data show that 327 sport management programs throughout the world are housed in accredited (159) and accreditation-pursuing business schools. Of these programs, 154 are housed in AACSB member institutions (79 accredited), 91 in ACBSP affiliated colleges and universities (36 accredited), and 72 in IACBE schools (44 accredited).
The trend towards sport management programs being housed in colleges of business signifies the importance of sound business principles as part of modern sport administration and offers opportunities for sport business programs to draw upon and to contribute to the general practice of business education. Business-based accreditation, curriculum issues, research performance assessment metrics, promotion and tenure considerations, industry relations, and many other mutually-identified areas of interest for collaborative work necessitated the formation of the Alliance for Sport Business (ASB).
ASB is an international professional organization composed of academic programs in accredited business schools/institutions committed to promoting and advancing sport business education through excellence in teaching, scholarly research, professional development, and collegial and creative collaboration with sport industry personnel and the greater academic and business community.
The value provided to member institutions by ASB is centered on three themes:
- ASB provides its member institutions with a forum to share tangible resources. The resources to be shared include, but are not limited to, tools to assess educational outcomes or assurances of learning, curricula, cases, exams, and other instructional materials, as well as relevant promotion and tenure materials such as journal metrics and rankings.
- ASB affords its member institutions with an interactive platform to develop and share ideas, concerns, best practices, and strategies among themselves and with business practitioners.
- ASB represents all member institutions in one voice to promote sport business programs and gain acceptance and recognition within business schools and among respective accrediting bodies.