What can explain the differences between European countries’ public policies for sports clubs?

The purpose of the article is to explain the differences in public policy for sports clubs among European countries. It uses empirical materials from the ‘Social Inclusion and Volunteering in Sports Clubs in Europe’ project. The comparison is based on the theory of opportunity structure. The political and institutional context of sports clubs provides opportunities as well as constraints within which sports clubs can act. The theories of welfare state typology are used to explain the differences between sports club policies. The analysis includes England, Denmark, Switzerland, Poland and Spain, which ‘represent’ five types of welfare state. The analysis shows that there are both significant similarities in the public policy for sports clubs among the five countries, but also differences arising from the type of welfare state that characterises each country in particular.