NCS4 Update: Sport Safety and Security Management: An Evolving Discipline

Welcome to the first edition of Gameday Security magazine. The National Center for Spectator Sports Safety and Security (NCS4) at The University of Southern Mississippi is very fortunate to have aligned with Athletic Business Media to offer current topics, commentaries and articles relevant to the practice of sports safety and security. Athletic Business Media's extensive media coverage of facility operations at the professional, collegiate, high school, municipal and military levels provides our profession with a media outlet to attract a broad segment of our growing sport safety and security field.

Sport safety and security management as a discipline can be traced to the tragic events of Sept. 11, 2001. This event demonstrated the need to develop programs to deal with terrorism prevention, response and recovery at mass-gathering venues. Large public/private venues — such as sports stadiums, arenas and open-access events — present unique security and disaster-response challenges that will require new knowledge and skills of those charged with these critical responsibilities.

Over the past 14 years, there has been an evolution and development of a sport safety and security management field, both as an academic discipline and a profession. The commitment to scholarly approaches to education, practice and research creates the common bonds across the sport security community. During this period, the movement was fueled by the integration of academic discipline with practice.

Some examples include NCS4 receiving more than $10 million in grants to facilitate this integration, the development of a professional certification (Certified Sport Security Professional), the graduate academic degree in sport management with emphasis in sport security, and the profession's first textbook for graduate students — all of which has promoted new knowledge and enhanced skills.

In July 2016, the profession will take another significant step with the establishment of Sport Safety and Security Journal, a peer-reviewed publication of research, case studies and technical applications. Rigorous scholarly inquiry will be applied to the realities and demands of practice.

We are excited to bring you Gameday Security, and hope you enjoy the first issue!

Lou Marciani
Director of NCS4