Building Athlete Entrepreneurship and Social Capital: A Case Study on Sport Fund Athletes

This master’s thesis investigates the rising phenomenon of athlete entrepreneurship in Finland within a case study setting of athletes in individual disciplines. The studied athletes are participating in an innovative program by Sport Fund Management Ltd, which offers early-stage funding and social...

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Main Author: Aaltonen, Amanda
Other Authors: Jyväskylän yliopiston kauppakorkeakoulu, Jyväskylä University School of Business and Economics, Jyväskylän yliopisto, University of Jyväskylä
Format: Master's thesis
Language:eng
Published: 2025
Subjects:
Online Access: https://jyx.jyu.fi/handle/123456789/101657
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author Aaltonen, Amanda
author2 Jyväskylän yliopiston kauppakorkeakoulu Jyväskylä University School of Business and Economics Jyväskylän yliopisto University of Jyväskylä
author_facet Aaltonen, Amanda Jyväskylän yliopiston kauppakorkeakoulu Jyväskylä University School of Business and Economics Jyväskylän yliopisto University of Jyväskylä Aaltonen, Amanda Jyväskylän yliopiston kauppakorkeakoulu Jyväskylä University School of Business and Economics Jyväskylän yliopisto University of Jyväskylä
author_sort Aaltonen, Amanda
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description This master’s thesis investigates the rising phenomenon of athlete entrepreneurship in Finland within a case study setting of athletes in individual disciplines. The studied athletes are participating in an innovative program by Sport Fund Management Ltd, which offers early-stage funding and social support structures for athlete entrepreneurs. The research data consists of six athletes’ interviews. The aim of the program is to create a sustainable funding model for the sports industry in Finland by combining private capital with mentoring and educational support through social networks. Social capital theory is thus chosen as a relevant theoretical lens for studying the phenomenon and how it supports athletes in their professionalization and entrepreneurial journey. The study utilizes an exploratory-descriptive qualitative research design within the case setting to develop an understanding of athletes’ self-assessed motivation, entrepreneurial competencies, and the impact of social capital on their journey. The results are analyzed using thematic analysis and compared against social capital theory. The findings reveal that athletes supported with funding and social capital have been content with their career choice of becoming athlete entrepreneurs. Their motivation to achieve success is high, and they can make more individualistic choices to support their athletic careers. The study further suggests that similar programs have the potential to create sustainable funding models for sports, at least in the short term, as the sports industry becomes increasingly commercialized. Tämä pro gradu -tutkielma tutkii urheilijayrittäjyyden kasvavaa ilmiötä Suomessa hyödyntäen yksilölajien urheilijoita tapaustutkimuksessa. Tutkimuksen kohteena olevat urheilijat osallistuvat Sport Fund Management Oy:n innovatiiviseen ohjelmaan, joka tarjoaa alkuvaiheen rahoitusta sekä sosiaalista tukiverkostoa urheilijayrittäjille. Tutkimusaineisto koostuu kuudesta urheilijan haastattelusta. Ohjelman tavoitteena on luoda kestävä rahoitusmalli Suomen urheilualalle yhdistämällä yksityinen pääoma mentorointiin sekä koulutukselliseen tukeen sosiaalisten verkostojen kautta. Ilmiön tutkimiseen sosiaalisen pääoman teoria on valittu relevantiksi teoreettiseksi näkökulmaksi, sillä se tarjoaa tukea urheilijoille heidän ammatillistumisessaan sekä yrittäjyyspolullaan. Tutkimuksessa hyödynnetään eksploratiivis-deskriptiivistä laadullista tutkimusotetta tarkastelemaan urheilijoiden itsearvioimaa motivaatiota, yrittäjyyskompetensseja ja sosiaalisen pääoman vaikutusta heidän matkallaan. Tulokset osoittavat, että urheilijat, jotka ovat saaneet sekä rahallista että sosiaalista pääomaa ovat olleet tyytyväisiä valintaansa lähteä urheilijayrittäjiksi. Heillä on korkea motivaatio menestyä, ja he pystyvät tekemään itsenäisempiä valintoja urheilu-uransa edistämiseksi kuin ennen. Tutkimustulokset lisäksi viittaavat siihen, että vastaavilla ohjelmilla olisi potentiaalia luoda kestäviä rahoitusmalleja urheilualalle, ainakin lyhyellä aikavälillä tarkasteltuna. Tämä korostuu merkityksessään urheilualan yhä enenevissä määrin kaupallistuessa Suomessa.
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The studied athletes are participating in an innovative program by Sport Fund Management Ltd, which offers early-stage funding and social support structures for athlete entrepreneurs. The research data consists of six athletes\u2019 interviews.\n\nThe aim of the program is to create a sustainable funding model for the sports industry in Finland by combining private capital with mentoring and educational support through social networks. Social capital theory is thus chosen as a relevant theoretical lens for studying the phenomenon and how it supports athletes in their professionalization and entrepreneurial journey.\n\nThe study utilizes an exploratory-descriptive qualitative research design within the case setting to develop an understanding of athletes\u2019 self-assessed motivation, entrepreneurial competencies, and the impact of social capital on their journey. 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spellingShingle Aaltonen, Amanda Building Athlete Entrepreneurship and Social Capital: A Case Study on Sport Fund Athletes Specialisation in Economics and Business Administration
title Building Athlete Entrepreneurship and Social Capital: A Case Study on Sport Fund Athletes
title_full Building Athlete Entrepreneurship and Social Capital: A Case Study on Sport Fund Athletes
title_fullStr Building Athlete Entrepreneurship and Social Capital: A Case Study on Sport Fund Athletes Building Athlete Entrepreneurship and Social Capital: A Case Study on Sport Fund Athletes
title_full_unstemmed Building Athlete Entrepreneurship and Social Capital: A Case Study on Sport Fund Athletes Building Athlete Entrepreneurship and Social Capital: A Case Study on Sport Fund Athletes
title_short Building Athlete Entrepreneurship and Social Capital: A Case Study on Sport Fund Athletes
title_sort building athlete entrepreneurship and social capital a case study on sport fund athletes
title_txtP Building Athlete Entrepreneurship and Social Capital: A Case Study on Sport Fund Athletes
topic Specialisation in Economics and Business Administration
topic_facet Specialisation in Economics and Business Administration
url https://jyx.jyu.fi/handle/123456789/101657 http://www.urn.fi/URN:NBN:fi:jyu-202504283513
work_keys_str_mv AT aaltonenamanda buildingathleteentrepreneurshipandsocialcapitalacasestudyonsportfundathletes