Global North vs Global South: Mapping the Bibliometric and Thematic Landscape of Sport Communication Research

Abstract

Sport communication has become an increasingly global field, but patterns of scholarly influence remain uneven. This study analyzes 2,928 sport communication articles indexed in the Scopus database, published until July 31, 2025. Using Latent Dirichlet Allocation (LDA), it identifies ten dominant themes ranging from digital fan engagement to gendered discourse and evaluates each by publication volume and citation impact (RQ1). It also assesses how author affiliation in the Global North or South relates to citation performance (RQ2), and whether thematic focus interacts with geographic region in ways that correspond with differences in visibility (RQ3). Results show that commercially oriented themes attract higher citations and are dominated by Global North scholars, while Global South authors remain under cited even within shared themes. Mixed region collaborations tend to improve citation metrics but fall short of addressing deeper structural inequalities. These disparities highlight systemic citation asymmetries that intersect with broader epistemic hierarchies within academic publishing. The study offers a critical, data driven contribution to debates on inclusion, impact, and thematic stratification in global sport communication.