Positioning of Corporate-sponsored Sports in Mitsubishi Corporation from the 1910s to Early 1920s

A Case Study of the Mitsubishi Club

Abstract

We aimed to reveal the positioning of corporate-sponsored sports from the perspective of the activities performed by those organizations that have been the main organizers of these sports.

Corporate-sponsored sports are said to enhance employees’ sense of belonging to, and unity with, their organizations. Focusing on this point, we examined whether this function works similarly even in an organization such as a conglomerate, where several companies comprise one group. We then used the results of our examination to clarify the positioning of corporate-sponsored sports in this type of group organization.

We targeted the Mitsubishi Club, an organization set up within the Mitsubishi Zaibatsu (a financial conglomerate) in 1914 (and continued to 1941). As there is little information available on the Mitsubishi Club, we first investigated its essential characteristics and nature in order to clarify its activities.

The Mitsubishi Club was an organization consisting of employees of all Mitsubishi Joint Stock Company hierarchies. It conducted sports and related literary activities ― not only in Tokyo, where Head Office was located, but also in the places all over Japan where the Mitsubishi group was doing business.

The Mitsubishi Club grew as the Mitsubishi Zaibatsu expanded, and after the Mitsubishi Joint Stock Company separated its divisions into separate companies, it became a cross-cutting organization across the Mitsubishi Zaibatsu and included the employees of these companies.

When Japanese society entered a recession after World War I, the activities of the Mitsubishi Club began to shrink as Mitsubishi Zaibatsu’s performance deteriorated. Budgets were cut, and some branches were forced to suspend their business activities.

In conclusion, we found that the Mitsubishi Club functioned to make everyone who belonged to it aware that they were a member of the Mitsubishi Zaibatsu, regardless of their business location or their company. It also enhanced members’ sense of belonging to, and unity with, the Mitsubishi Zaibatsu. The activities of the Mitsubishi Club, or those of corporate-sponsored sports, were positioned as a benefit for the Mitsubishi Zaibatsu.