Purpose

This systematic literature review examines the domain of sports sponsorship involving controversial industries. We delve into the shared patterns, differences and overarching themes prevalent across various dark consumption industries (i.e. alcohol, food and beverages high in fat, salt and sugar, gambling and tobacco).

Design/methodology/approach

This study systematically reviews research on controversial sports sponsorships (CSS). Literature searches in Web of Science and Scopus, and additional searches in reference lists resulted in a total of 90 publications meeting the inclusion criteria, which can be grouped into three research clusters: prevalence, impact and (in)appropriateness of CSS.

Findings

This review revealed a high prevalence of so-called controversial sponsors in sports, particularly in – but certainly not limited to – soccer. Especially gambling sponsorships have become more prominent in recent years. Ethical concerns surfaced since CSS are positively related to attitudes, preferences, purchase intention and consumption, potentially causing health-harming consequences for children and adults.

Practical implications

This study provides scholars and practitioners with insights to advocate for policy measures curbing CSS.

Originality/value

In light of the identified research gaps, we propose a research agenda to particularly investigate causal relationships between exposure to CSS and its impact by conducting longitudinal and experimental research. Additionally, we propose to establish a consumer-centered framework for processing CSS.

中文翻译：

---

在辩论的舞台上：关于有争议行业的体育赞助的系统文献综述

 目的

本系统文献综述考察了涉及有争议行业的体育赞助领域。我们深入研究了各种黑暗消费行业（即酒精、高脂肪、高盐和高糖的食品和饮料、赌博和烟草）中普遍存在的共同模式、差异和总体主题。

设计/方法/方法

本研究系统回顾了关于有争议的体育赞助 （CSS） 的研究。在 Web of Science 和 Scopus 中进行文献检索，并在参考文献列表中进行额外检索，共有 90 篇出版物符合纳入标准，这些标准可分为三个研究集群：CSS 的流行率、影响和（不）适当性。

 发现

本综述揭示了体育运动中所谓的有争议赞助商的高普遍性，尤其是在足球领域，但肯定不限于足球领域。尤其是赌博赞助近年来变得更加突出。由于 CSS 与态度、偏好、购买意愿和消费呈正相关，因此存在道德问题，可能会对儿童和成人造成损害健康的后果。

 实际意义

这项研究为学者和从业者提供了见解，以倡导遏制 CSS 的政策措施。

 原创性/价值

鉴于已确定的研究差距，我们提出了一个研究议程，通过进行纵向和实验研究来特别调查暴露于 CSS 与其影响之间的因果关系。此外，我们建议建立一个以消费者为中心的框架来处理 CSS。