Celebration Capitalism and the Olympic Games

In this provocative critical study of the contemporary Olympics, Jules Boykoff argues that the Games have become a massive planned economy designed to shield the rich from risk while providing them with a spectacle to treasure. He develops an innovative theory of ‘celebration capitalism’, which is the manipulation of state actors as partners that drive us towards public-private partnerships in which the public pays and the private profits. Controversial, challenging and forthright, this book opens up a fascinating new avenue for understanding the contemporary Olympics in the context of global capitalist society. It is essential reading for anybody with an interest in the Olympic Games, the relationship between sport and society, or global politics and culture.