FIFA World Cup Qatar 2022, which will be held in a few months in the authoritarian emir state, is the provisional “highlight” of authoritarian states’ use of international sporting events as a political tool. “Sportswashing” is called the phenomenon by journalists, researchers and politicians – in and outside of the world of sport – but there is no officially recognized definition of the phenomenon. Amnesty International describes “sportswashing” as an expression of “… that sport is used by states, organizations, companies or individuals to improve reputation and public perception – both nationally and internationally. “Sportswashing” is when sports are used as PR and propaganda by states known for systematic and severe suppression of human rights and to remove the focus of serious social problems and violations of democratic rights”.
“Soft power” is a more accurate term than “sportswashing”
It is more accurate to use the term “soft power” instead of “sportswashing”, as it is not only authoritarian states such as China, Russia, Saudi Arabia or Qatar that use mega-events such as the Olympics, World Championships, Formula 1, golf and tennis tournaments as political tools, both internally in relation to the states’ own populations and externally in relation to the world community. Democratic states such as Germany (FIFA World Cup 2006), the United Kingdom (Olympic Games 2012) and France (Tour de France) have also used sport’s mega-events for staged narratives about these nations’ advantages, qualities and contributions to the world community.
“Soft power” creates new and strong networks and alliances
The theory of “soft power” was developed by the political scientist Joseph Nye, who emphasizes that power and power relations between nations do not only consist of traditional factors such as military or economic power (“hard power”). “Soft power” is used to get what you want through attraction and persuasion in order to achieve recognition of a nation’s culture, political values and foreign policy. At the same time, Joseph Nye emphasizes that a nation achieves its greatest influence by combining “hard power” and “soft power” in a unified strategy, which he calls “smart power”. The theory of “soft power” can largely explain why states – especially authoritarian ones – “invest” gigantic sums in sports mega-events to create new and strong diplomatic networks and alliances.
“Soft power” as a political tool is not a new phenomenon
At Play the Game’s 25th anniversary conference (June 2022), “sportswashing” or states’ use of “soft power” was one of the main themes. Professor Jules Boykoff from Pacific University (USA) emphasized that the phenomenon has a long history with the 1936 Olympic Games in Berlin as one of the most significant examples. Hitler’s Nazi Germany deliberately and strategically used the Olympic Games for a propagandistic self-presentation of the Third Reich: a staged party where the host nation presented itself as a peaceful and working nation to the world community. Only three years later, this illusion completely burst and set all of Europe and large parts of Asia on fire.
The United States and the Soviet Union: “Soft power” during the Cold War
The historical dimension of the phenomenon is also highlighted by senior analyst Stanis Elsborg from Play the Game. Elsborg emphasizes that the Cold War between the superpowers – the United States and the Soviet Union – from the late 1940s to the collapse of the Soviet Union in the early 1990s was not just a military arms race (“hard power”). The Cold War – or the race – was also fought in the sports arenas – not least in connection with the Olympic Games. The two superpowers used “soft power” to a large extent to convince the rest of the world’s nations – and not least the Western-oriented nations in Europe and the Eastern Bloc nations respectively – that they stood for the most attractive social system that could also produce the best athletes. The United States and the Soviet Union used the opening ceremony at their hosting of the 1980 Olympics in Moscow – where the US did not participate – and the 1984 Olympics in Los Angeles – where the Soviet Union and most countries from Eastern Europe did not participate – to demonstrate space policy ambitions. The battle between the two “systems” should thus not “only” take place through military capacity and in the sports arenas – but also in space via modern technology.
China: A new superpower, both in sports and space
In the past two decades, a new superpower – China – has really emerged in international sports and space travel. Chinese President Xi Jinping has his own “space dream” and is convinced that the path to world domination goes through space. China has great space policy ambitions, which involves the idea of building a base on the moon and a manned mission to Mars. This message was communicated at the opening ceremony of the 2008 Olympics in Beijing, as well as by the mascot for the 2022 Winter Olympics: a panda dressed as an astronaut. Stronger symbolic value cannot be sent to all children and young people in the world’s most populous nation.
Qatar: Major user of “soft power” in connection with sports mega-events
After the turn of the millennium, especially China (Olympics 2008 and Winter Olympics 2022), Russia (Winter Olympics 2014 and FIFA World Cup 2018) and Qatar have used “soft power” as a political strategy – with greater or lesser success. Qatar has systematically and strategically used sport’s mega-events to gain political goodwill and, not least, to develop commercial networks within the global sports industry. Among the biggest international sporting events that have taken place in Qatar are the Asian Games (2006), the World Championship in team handball (2015), the World Championship in road cycling (2016) and the World Championship in athletics (2019). FIFA World Cup 2022 is the next showcase, but the “crown jewel” for Qatar will surely be to be awarded the hosting of the Olympic Games in 2036. Qatar was awarded the hosting of FIFA World Cup 2022, which has created an intense debate about the relationship between sports, politics and human rights, two reasons in particular. Firstly, the evidence that there was corruption in FIFA during the awarding of the World Cup hosts for 2018 and 2022. Secondly, international organizations – such as Amnesty International, Human Rights Watch and Sport for Rights – as well as journalists’ coverage of Qatar’s problems in respecting basic human rights, especially in relation to the many migrant workers who have since 2010 built stadiums, hotels and infrastructure to be ready to receive fans from around the world when the FIFA World Cup Qatar 2022 kicks off on 21 November 2022.
Literature on “soft power” and international sport:
Joseph Nye: “Soft Power: The Means to Success in World Politics” (2004)
Jules Boykoff: “Power Games – A Political History of the Olympics (2016)
Stanis Elsborg: “Sporten er en yndet arena for budskaber” – https://www.idan.dk/nyheder/sporten-er-en-yndet-arena-for-politiske-budskaber/
Francios Colin, Hein Meurs, Jurryt van de Vooren & Teun Meurs: No More Qatar (2022).
Amnesty International – https://www.amnesty.org.uk/search/sportswashing
