Rugby is a potential way for New Zealand to exercise "soft power" in the world of international diplomacy, a joint New Zealand-US study has found.

The U.S. Department of State and the NBA announced yesterday that they will tip off their 2011 sports envoy program next week with a trip to India that will feature the Mystics' Katie Smith and NBA Hall of Famer Gervin.

The U.S. Department of State's Bureau of Educational and Cultural Affairs and the NBA announced a "sports envoy" program today, tipping off with with a Feb. 22-March 2 mission to India. Hall of Fame player George Gervin...and women's NBA star Katie Smith will visit Mumbai and New Delhi...

Let me begin by describing a scenario to you.

It’s Wednesday night in Costa Rica, about 8.30pm, and people in Costa Rica, as people do in most countries, are watching prime-time television. On this particular night, Costa Rica takes on their neighbors Venezuela in a soccer match and, due to the mass popularity of soccer in Costa Rica, it is drawing a large audience. Costa Rica scores, and after endless replays and analysis of a truly average goal, the action cuts to a "and here’s the reaction in China" sequence of pictures.

The English outcry at FIFA's decision to award the World Cup to Russia and Qatar has obscured what might be a brilliant gesture of goodwill.

ASEAN foreign ministers have discussed the possibility of hosting the FIFA World Cup. This initiative underlines the need for both academics and practitioners to include sports issues in international relations.

A "rapid response unit" should be set-up by the Foreign and Commonwealth Office (FCO) ahead of next year's Olympics and Paralympics to "rebut or challenge negative stories appearing in the world media", a report published by MPs has recommended.

South Africans who seek to participate in influential global decision-making organisations, whether political, sporting or economic, must be encouraged and supported by the government to ensure they achieve those objectives, which in turn will benefit the country.