scholarly journals Sports as cultural diplomacy: the 2010 FIFA World Cup in South Africa’s foreign policy

2009 ◽  
Vol 11 (1-2) ◽  
pp. 144-153 ◽  
Author(s):  
Sifiso Mxolisi Ndlovu
Keyword(s):  
Foreign Policy ◽  
Cultural Diplomacy ◽  
World Cup ◽  
Fifa World Cup

Cutbacks increase risk of elite infighting in Qatar

2016 ◽  
Keyword(s):  
Foreign Policy ◽  
Saudi Arabia ◽  
Domestic Politics ◽  
Political Stability ◽  
Royal Family ◽  
World Cup ◽  
Fifa World Cup ◽  
Content Type ◽  
Increase Risk ◽  
Double Digit

Subject Qatar domestic politics. Significance Emir Tamim bin Hamad Al Thani carried out a cabinet reshuffle on January 27. The reshuffle saw the promotion of a number of new ministers and a reduction in the overall number of ministries, reflecting efforts by the emir to clear out the 'old guard', and cut costs as the country enters a period of fiscal tightening after years of double-digit growth. Impacts Some of the pledged 200 billion dollars in spending ahead of the 2022 FIFA World Cup may also be at risk. Financial stress will temper Qatar's 'appetite' for foreign policy autonomy and reinforce its realignment with Saudi Arabia. Factional infighting within the royal family is likely to be a greater threat to political stability than social dissent.

South Africa’s Engagement in Sports Diplomacy: The Successful Hosting of the 2010 FIFA World Cup

2013 ◽  
Vol 8 (3-4) ◽  
pp. 197-210 ◽  
Author(s):  
Andreia Soares e Castro
Keyword(s):  
South Africa ◽  
Foreign Policy ◽  
South African ◽  
Soft Power ◽  
African Continent ◽  
World Cup ◽  
Fifa World Cup ◽  
Mega Events ◽  
Sports Diplomacy ◽  
Policy Goals

Summary This article begins by recognizing the importance of sport in South African history, before turning to South Africa’s vision and strategy, as articulated around and beyond the successful hosting of mega-events, particularly the 2010 FIFA World Cup, the first World Cup to be held on the African continent. The article suggests that mega-events are an important stage and priority of a broader and longer-term strategy of enhancing South Africa’s soft power, prestige and visibility. In this context, sport and mega-events are important foreign policy tools and have greatly benefited South Africa, the African continent and the international relations system. Using South Africa as a case study, this article explores the concept of sports diplomacy — that is, the use of sports as an instrument for furthering foreign policy goals, causes or interests — and argues that it is a significant and a rising source of soft power.

scholarly journals Sport and International Relations: Qatari Soft Power and Foreign Policy Making

تجسير ◽  
2021 ◽  
Vol 3 (2) ◽  
pp. 145-170
Author(s):  
Noof Al-Dosari
Keyword(s):  
Foreign Policy ◽  
International Relations ◽  
Soft Power ◽  
Political Identity ◽  
World Cup ◽  
Fifa World Cup ◽  
Sports Diplomacy ◽  
Sports Events ◽  
Policy Goals ◽  
Realist Analysis

Sport plays a significant role in politics and international relations. However, the relationship between soft power and hosting a sports mega-event such as the Olympic Games, or the FIFA world cup is unclear. Most literature that has examined the role of sport in Qatari soft power adheres to the Realist School of international relations theory. It has tended to emphasize the size of the country in understanding what motivates its engagement in sports diplomacy. This paper attempts to move beyond this realist analysis of soft power by drawing on the post-structuralist –interpretive approach and discourse theory. This perspective better accounts for how sports diplomacy is used in different cultural contexts. In arguing that Qatar represents particular cultural and historical traditions, and sports define the country’s distinct political identity, the paper looks at how Qatar has exercised soft power through sports diplomacy and hosting major international sports events. The paper will analyze formal state discourses surrounding Qatar’s decision to host FIFA World Cup 2022, and we discuss how this use of sports diplomacy is helping achieve several Qatari foreign policy goals.

Selecting the best team from the players in the 2018 FIFA World Cup using performance analysis

2020 ◽  
Vol 42 (1) ◽  
pp. 15-32
Author(s):  
Tugay Karadag ◽  
Coskun Parim ◽  
Erhan Cene
Keyword(s):  
Performance Analysis ◽  
Topsis Method ◽  
World Cup ◽  
Fifa World Cup ◽  
Performance Variables

This study aims to determine the best player in each position from among the footballers who played in the 2018 World Cup in Russia. Player statistics for those who played over 200 minutes were obtained from the FIFA official and transfermarkt.com websites. Selected performance variables were then calculated per 100 minutes and the results were normalised. Kruskal Wallis H and Bonferroni Tests were used to determine the weights of the variables before the analysis. As the variables will have different values according to the players’ positions, the weights for each position were calculated separately. Finally, the performances of the players on the basis of the variables used were ranked for each position using the TOPSIS method. A second analysis was undertaken including only those players whose ages were under 28 and goalkeepers whose ages were under 32. The purpose of this analysis was to identify players with potential that had been largely unrecognised up until the tournament. It was found that both the teams selected in this way were dominated by players from European clubs. Ninety-two percent of the top sixty players in the analysis were playing in European leagues with 85% playing in Spain, England, Italy, Germany, France or Russia.

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