Sports Stars & Soft Power: New Takes on Sports Diplomacy

Did you know that the International Olympic Committee pre-dates the United Nations? CPD Faculty Fellow James Pamment of Lund University notes this fact while introducing a new special issue of the journal Place Branding and Public Diplomacy focused on all things sports diplomacy. 

From mega-events such as the Olympics to sports stars who "are capable of transcending national, cultural and racial boundaries," the international reach of sports carries implications for soft power, marketing and statecraft. In addition to Pamment's editorial, the issue features six perspectives on sports diplomacy, including a theoretical discussion by Yoav Dubinsky and a case study on the 2012 London Olympics by Tiffany Bourgeois. 

"Sports diplomacy has, over the past few years, developed into a vibrant field of inquiry relevant to both practitioners and scholars," writes Pamment, editor of the special issue. "Sitting at the intersection of many fields, it raises fundamental questions of politics, diplomacy and statecraft. Diplomacy is, for example, central to the questions of recognition and governance that enable representatives of countries to come together to compete."

Read all of the pieces featured in the sports diplomacy special issue of Place Branding and Public Diplomacy here.