SportPower: Soft Power, Diplomacy, and Global Influence

SportPower: Soft Power, Diplomacy, and Global Influence explores the multidimensional impact of sport on international relations, national identity, and cultural influence. The text presents sport as a nuanced instrument utilized by entities ranging from nations to individuals to shape perceptions, engage in diplomacy, and project cultural narratives on a global scale.

Through a diverse collection of chapters contributed by leading scholars and practitioners from across the globe, this volume uncovers the powerful role of sport on the world stage. It offers fresh perspectives and critical insights by exploring the World Cup, the Olympic Games, athlete-driven nation branding and digital diplomacy, regional alliances, migration and integration, and the globalization of Indigenous sport. The book highlights sport as both a unifying force and a strategic tool in global politics, showcasing its ability to inspire cooperation, shape national identities, and influence international relations, while also confronting the risks of misuse and manipulation.

SportPower is ideal for courses in sport studies, international relations, cultural diplomacy, media and communication, global studies, political science, and the sociology of sport. It presents a balanced examination of both theoretical and practical aspects of sport's intersection with global power dynamics.

Keunsu Han, Ph.D. is an associate professor at Towson University, USA. He previously served as a visiting scholar at the University of Oxford, UK. His research focuses on organizational dynamics in sport, and he has developed an extensive body of scholarly work, publishing in respected journals and presenting at leading national and international conferences.

Gashaw Abeza, Ph.D. is an associate professor at Towson University, USA. His research focuses on marketing communication in sport, and he has published extensively with more than 90 scholarly works, including 9 books, 49 journal articles, and 38 book chapters. He serves on the editorial boards of 10 academic journals and contributes as an ad hoc reviewer for several others.