Mapping the relationship between international sport and diplomacy

Abstract

To date, the relationship between diplomacy and international sport has been relatively undertheorized. This paper seeks to redress the deficiency by proposing an analytical taxonomy of the multiple convergences between international sport and diplomacy. The principal analytical distinction to be drawn is between (1) international sport consciously employed by governments as an instrument of diplomacy and (2) international-sport-as-diplomacy, the diplomatic representation, communication and negotiation between non-state actors that take place as a result of ongoing international sporting competition. By increasing understanding of the roˆles of sport in diplomacy and diplomacy in sport, the paper seeks to promote the adoption of best practices to facilitate effective use of sport in diplomacy by governments and effective use of diplomacy by international sporting bodies, and to instigate a debate between theorists and practitioners from both realms.

Omnivorousness in sport: The importance of social capital and networks

“…It can act to transmit pro-social values such as fairness and rule following. Sport may also act as a vehicle for citizens to engage with other countries (Cha, 2009;Murray, 2013;Murray and Pigman, 2013). …”

Promoting Scotland, Diplomacy and Influence through Sport

“…Something that the authors of this paper have commented upon extensively over the last decade or more (Jarvie, 2006;Jarvie, Thornton and Mackie, 2017). Furthermore, the authors are well aware that sport can be employed for anti-diplomatic purposes -however this article is not the appropriate place for either of these discussions, but it is acknowledged (Murray, 2012;Murray and Pigman 2013). For doubters and cynics, international sport can be hijacked and abused for national or personal gain.…”

“A Tale of Two Croatias”: How Club Football (Soccer) Teams Produce Radical Regional Divides in Croatia’s National Identity

“…Sports contacts are important geopolitical rituals that have the capacity to both bridge and divide disparate groups of people. On an international scale, these contacts often serve as diplomatic opportunities for international reconciliation between states, particularly as a medium for defusing conflicts (Murray and Pigman 2014;L'Etang 2013;Rowe 2011). The "ping-pong diplomacy" between the United States and Communist China during the Nixon era represents an example of this type of facilitative use (Kobierecki 2017a).…”

“…The United States-led boycott of the 1980 Olympic games in Moscow in protest of the Soviet invasion of Afghanistan represents one such use of this type of hostile diplomacy. Clashes between fans of Honduras and El Salvador in a controversial qualifier for the 1970 FIFA World Cup represents another unfavorable outcome, as its escalation inadvertently led to an all-out war between the two nations (Murray and Pigman 2014;Jackson and Haigh 2008). The hostage crisis at the 1972 Munich Olympics ultimately strained geopolitical tensions between regional players in the Israeli-Palestinian conflict.…”