Identification of the Determinants Influencing the Emergence and Control of Corruption in Iran’s Football Industry

Savari, Mohammad Amin; Farzan, Farzam; Ehsani, Mohammad; Yoon, Yong Jin

doi:10.22124/jsmd.2025.30320.2976

Document Type : Research Paper I Open Access I Released under (CC BY-NC 4.0) license

Authors

¹ Ph.D. Student in Sport Management, Faculty of Sports Sciences, University of Mazandaran, Babolsar, Iran

² Associate Professor of Sports Management, Faculty of Sports Sciences, University of Mazandaran, Babolsar, Iran

³ Professor of Sport Management, Department of Sport Sciences, Faculty of Humanities, Tarbiat Modares University, Tehran, Iran

⁴ Professor of Sport Management, Department of Sports Industry Studies, Yonsei University, Seoul, South Korea

10.22124/jsmd.2025.30320.2976

Abstract

Objective: This study investigated the emergence and persistence of corruption in Iran’s football industry. It aimed to identify the institutional, structural, and cultural determinants of systemic corruption, with the objective of developing a conceptual and strategic framework to enhance governance in professional football.
Methodology: A qualitative research design based on Glaserian Grounded Theory was adopted. Data were gathered through thirteen in-depth, semi-structured interviews with football specialists and key informants from Iran, the United States, Italy, Australia, Qatar, and Iraq. The analytical process involved open, selective, and theoretical coding, conducted using MAXQDA 2024. The resulting conceptual model was developed in accordance with Glaser’s 6C framework, which includes Causes, Contexts, Conditions, Covariance, Contingency, and Consequences.
Results: The findings demonstrated that corruption within Iran’s football industry is deeply rooted and structurally embedded. Key contributing factors included weak institutional governance, political influence, opaque economic practices, a cultural tolerance for corruption, ineffective monitoring systems, and dysfunction within the judicial apparatus. The central phenomenon identified was systemic corruption in the governance of football. Ten overarching themes were incorporated into the final conceptual model, capturing the complexity and multi-layered nature of the issue.
Conclusion: Addressing corruption in football requires comprehensive institutional reform, the establishment of independent oversight bodies, the deployment of transparency-enhancing technologies, the promotion of integrity-driven values, and the consistent enforcement of legal and regulatory frameworks. The conceptual model developed in this study provides a strategic foundation for policymakers and football administrators, particularly in contexts marked by fragile governance systems.

Keywords

Main Subjects

Sport Economics, Marketing and Tourism

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Identification of the Determinants Influencing the Emergence and Control of Corruption in Iran’s Football Industry

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Volume 15, Issue 1 - Serial Number 45Spring - 45March 2026Pages 1-24

Volume 15, Issue 1 - Serial Number 45
Spring - 45
March 2026
Pages 1-24