Trends and Patterns of Sports Research in Islam: Bibliometric Analysis Using the Scopus Database

Sports are highly recommended in Islam, especially archery, horse riding, and swimming. All three contain aspects of health, skill, accuracy, sportsmanship, and competition. The main objective of this study is to conduct a systematic analysis of trending research literature, especially on the topic of sports in Islam, using bibliometric analysis. This study uses a bibliometric analysis approach with the help of the VOSViewer application. The search results show 393 sports studies in Islam published from 1928-2021 using the Scopus database. Based on VOSViewer mapping, the findings reveal that: the number of publications from 1928 to 2021 fluctuated; Of the 393 documents published, the United Kingdom published the most articles (146 documents); Tansin Benn (University of Birmingham, Birmingham, United Kingdom) were the most influential authors contributing articles (17 documents) and was the most cited author (508 citations); the sources that published the most documents were the Journal of Sports Sciences (20 documents); the most influential documents (134 citations) was entitled “Young Muslim Women and Sport: The Impact of Identity Work” written by Kristin Walseth; keywords that often appear are “Islam, sport, gender, religion, Ramadan, Muslim, football, Muslim women, physical education, fasting”. For further researchers, they can see exciting topics to be researched.