From minority to mainstream sport: establishing basketball in Scotland

Abstract

The history of wartime basketball in Scotland to date is limited. Gleaning information from local newspapers in the British Newspaper Archive, the article focuses on Scottish basketball during the 1930s and 1940s which were the transformational period of basketball in Scotland. It builds upon early knowledge about Scottish basketball through discussing the changing attitudes and growing acceptance of the game within culture and society. The article also adds to current historiography through documenting basketball’s search for recognition and its pre, during and post-World War II (WWII) development. It covers three areas: participatory patterns in perceived aggregate minority sports concerning what approaches worked and which did not; the impact of WWII on a minority sports development; the popularity of non-traditional and quintessential sports in wartime. The findings reveal that basketball became established in Scotland due to three overarching factors; societal shifts around sport; efforts of Scottish sport organizations; and WWII.