My expertise and interests span Islamophobia in sport, sport in the Arabian Peninsula, the sociology of fandom and identity, sports mega-events and geopolitics, and Intergroup Contact Theory (a psychological framework relating to interaction between different groups) - particularly in sport. I teach Sports Management at UCB with a unique cross-cultural lens thanks to my professional experiences working for a sport-for-development organisation (where I focused on promoting sexual health awareness through football in Sub-Saharan Africa) and living and teaching in South Korea.
My hands-on industry experiences are complemented by my academic work. I designed and delivered lectures in Sports Journalism at the University of Brighton and in Sports Management at the University of Portsmouth. I’ve also had my research work published, covering topics such as Islamophobia in English professional and amateur football, and sport and the Arabian Peninsula.
The thing that inspires me most is unpacking the great paradox of sport: how it can be a source of both division and unity, often simultaneously.