This thesis focuses on sports ethics played on a hobby basis, specifically looking at the Hobby-Fußball-Liga Graz (HFL) (amateur football league). The HFL is comprised of more than 30 teams that compete in three leagues in championship mode. Even though the focus is on amateur athletes, unfair actions have occurred repeatedly both on and off the pitch. Consequently, a code of ethics was introduced in 2012. The theoretical part of this thesis is concerned with ethics in sports, the nature of sports, its social dimensions, as well as a more precise definition of amateur sports. It will furthermore outline why sports and games are ideal learning environments for enhancing social skills and also add to the players personal development. Sportive competition is if it is embedded in a moral order and following the principle of fairness a school for motivating and performance-enhancing competitiveness. Fairness, however, is far more than the mere compliance with rules. Rather, fairness means safeguarding equal opportunities and respectful treatment of the opponent, without which there could be no contest. Interviews with seven players and referees, who are active in the HFL, demonstrate that the fun of the game and fairness in practice often become secondary on the playing field. Interviewees collectively esteemed fairness highly. However, performance-related pressure that results from the rivalry inherent of the league system often overshadows this shared value. The conclusion of this thesis consists of an analysis of the amateur football league HFL considering the definition of amateur sports, as well as a collection of ideas which can be used to further work on ethics in this field. An effective strategy for improvement could be better and more explicit acknowledgement of the performance itself rather than victory on the pitch. |