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Distinction-Level Dissertation Proposal Guide

Example Topic:

Balancing Commercial and Community Objectives: The Implications of Football Club Privatisation under Saudi Vision 2030

1. Start With a Research Problem, Not a Topic Most students begin with a topic.

Example:

❌ Football club privatisation in Saudi Arabia.

This is not a research problem.

A distinction-level proposal begins with a tension, contradiction, or unanswered question.

Example:

✅ Football clubs are expected to create social and community value, yet privatisation increases commercial pressures. Can clubs successfully balance both objectives?

This creates a problem worth researching.

Before writing anything, answer:

What is the tension?

Why is it important?

Why does it matter now?

2. Build the Proposal Around Themes, Not Authors One of the most common mistakes is writing:

"Morrow says..."

"Walters says..."

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"Freeman says..."

This becomes descriptive.

Instead, organise the literature around themes.

Theme 1: Football Clubs as Social Institutions

Key Question:

Are football clubs simply businesses?

Core Literature:

Morrow (2003) Morrow (2013) Coalter (2007)

Key Argument:

Football clubs create social value that extends beyond financial performance.

Theme 2: Commercialisation of Football

Key Question:

How has football become increasingly commercial?

Core Literature:

Franck (2010) Hamil & Walters (2010) Rohde & Breuer (2017)

Key Argument:

Commercialisation improves financial sustainability but may change organisational priorities.

Theme 3: Stakeholder Theory

Key Question:

Who should football clubs serve?

• • •

• • •

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Core Literature:

Freeman (1984) Freeman et al. (2007)

Key Argument:

Football clubs should create value for multiple stakeholder groups, not solely investors.

Theme 4: CSR and Community Value

Key Question:

What responsibilities do football clubs have towards society?

Core Literature:

Walters & Tacon (2010) Walters & Anagnostopoulos (2012) Anagnostopoulos & Shilbury (2013) Smith & Westerbeek (2007)

Key Argument:

Football clubs possess unique social responsibilities because of their community relationships.

Theme 5: Governance

Key Question:

How do governance structures influence organisational behaviour?

Core Literature:

Hoye & Cuskelly (2021) Geeraert (2018)

Key Argument:

Governance systems shape how organisations balance competing stakeholder interests.

Theme 6: Saudi Vision 2030 Context

Key Question:

Why is Saudi Arabia a unique context?

• •

• • • •

• •

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Core Literature:

Chadwick et al. Vision 2030 Ministry of Sport publications

Key Argument:

Football club privatisation forms part of a broader national transformation agenda.

3. Build a Genuine Research Gap Weak Research Gap:

❌ Nobody has studied Saudi Arabia.

This is rarely sufficient.

Strong Research Gap:

✅ Existing research has extensively examined football governance, commercialisation and stakeholder management within European football systems. However, little is known about how these competing priorities are managed within state-led football privatisation programmes such as Saudi Vision 2030.

This creates:

Academic relevance Originality Justification

4. Select a Theory That Solves the Problem Do not select a theory simply because it is popular.

The theory must help answer the research question.

For this topic:

Primary Theory

Stakeholder Theory

(Freeman, 1984)

Reason:

• • •

• • •

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The study examines how football clubs balance the interests of:

Investors Communities Supporters Government Sponsors

Stakeholder Theory provides a framework for analysing those relationships.

5. Create Clear Research Objectives Good objectives explain exactly what the study will do.

Example:

Examine governance and ownership changes associated with football club privatisation.

Explore how community value is conceptualised within football governance literature.

Analyse how privatised football clubs communicate community responsibilities.

Evaluate tensions between commercial objectives and community responsibilities.

Assess implications for sustainable community value creation.

6. Justify Every Methodological Decision Never simply state what method you will use.

Always explain why.

Example:

Research Philosophy

Interpretivism

Reason:

The research seeks to understand meanings, priorities and organisational narratives rather than measure numerical relationships.

• • • • •

1.

2.

3.

4.

5.

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Research Approach

Qualitative

Reason:

The study focuses on understanding governance, community value and organisational behaviour.

Data Collection

Document Analysis

Sources:

Vision 2030 Ministry of Sport Saudi Pro League Club reports CSR reports

Reason:

Football privatisation is primarily represented through policy and governance documents.

Data Analysis

Thematic Analysis

Themes:

Commercialisation Governance Stakeholder Management Community Value Sustainability

Reason:

Allows identification of patterns across multiple documents.

7. Include a Central Argument A strong proposal should contain an anticipated argument.

Example:

• • • • •

• • • • •

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Football club privatisation may enhance financial sustainability and governance effectiveness; however, it may simultaneously challenge the traditional community role of professional football clubs unless stakeholder interests remain embedded within governance structures.

This argument should connect:

Introduction Literature Review Theory Methodology Conclusion

8. Acknowledge Limitations Strong proposals recognise limitations.

Example:

Reliance on documentary evidence. Limited ability to measure actual community outcomes. Ongoing nature of Saudi football privatisation. Potential differences between public communications and organisational practice.

9. Demonstrate Contribution Always answer:

Why should anyone care about this research?

Academic Contribution:

Extends football governance literature beyond Europe. Applies Stakeholder Theory to a new context. Contributes to research on sport transformation.

Practical Contribution:

Supports policymakers. Supports football clubs. Supports governance reform.

10. Structure for a 1500-Word Proposal Introduction: 250–300 words

• • • • •

• • • •

• • •

• • •

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Research Aim, Question and Objectives: 100–150 words

Literature Review and Research Gap: 450–550 words

Theoretical Framework: 150–200 words

Methodology and Data Analysis: 250–300 words

Ethics and Limitations: 100–150 words

Expected Contribution and Conclusion: 150–200 words

References: Excluded from word count (where permitted)

Core References for This Topic Freeman, R.E. (1984)

Morrow, S. (2003)

Morrow, S. (2013)

Walters, G. & Tacon, R. (2010)

Walters, G. & Anagnostopoulos, C. (2012)

Anagnostopoulos, C. & Shilbury, D. (2013)

Hoye, R. & Cuskelly, G. (2021)

Geeraert, A. (2018)

Coalter, F. (2007)

Smith, A. & Westerbeek, H. (2007)

Chadwick, S. et al.

Saudi Vision 2030 Documentation

Saudi Ministry of Sport Publications

Final Rule A distinction-level proposal is not judged by how much information it contains.

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It is judged by how clearly it answers four questions:

What is the problem?

What does the literature already tell us?

What do we still not know?

How will this research help answer that question?

1.

2.

3.

4.

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