Olympism Inc. and Socioeconomic Complexities

The chapter discusses the inherent tension between the idealistic principles of Olympism and the Olympic Movement becoming a commercial juggernaut. Since the privately funded Los Angeles 1984 Olympic Games, the creation of the The Olympic Partners (TOP) Program in the following year, the rise of media rights, and the abolishment of amateurism, the generation of revenues changed the nature of the Olympic Movement. Over the years, the International Olympic Committee (IOC) have extended the Olympic brand and product lines beyond just the competitions in the Olympic Games, to having a network of Olympic education, targeting larger audiences beyond sports fans through the Cultural Olympiad, adding the cycles of the Youth Olympic Games and relatively working on esports strategies, targeting next generations while giving stakeholders more opportunities to capitalize on their investments. This chapter discusses the various aspects of the commercial evolution of the Olympic Movement, how it radically changed from its amateurish roots while trying to ideologically justify its commercial partnerships through its charter, and how corporate partners try to associate with universal Olympic values amid the ongoing criticism and backlash.