Definition of sports culture and its components regarding to experts, athletes and sport authorities opinions in Iran

The purpose of this research was to define sports culture and its components in Iran.
The technique chosen to create this definition was qualitative, using the Delphi method. The research population included sport management experts and sociologists, athletes, sport managers, coaches, people who were familiar with the cultural atmosphere in sports, and active Protagonists in sports(N=111) who participated in the four rounds of the Delphi method selected and used in this research, with considerable decrease in numbers with each round.
The results led to this definition for sports culture: “sports culture means a combination of expecting beliefs and assumptions in sports; behaving in ways in accord with favored social values and norms, including respectful behaviors, observing ethics, and the glorification of other nations’ cultures; creating sport participation habits through managing resources in order to make circumstances and equipment for sport activities more readily available to those who wish to participate in sports; and presenting the artistic and aesthetic aspects of sports as tangible cultural artifacts in society”.
This definition was similar to famous cultural models and frames, with some exceptions in terms of emphasizing Islamic/Iranian values and the addition of concerns for resource management as an important component in the definition.