SPORT AND INTERNATIONAL POLITICS IN THE CHANGING WORLD ORDER - POLIDEMOS 18

The approach of the Milano-Cortina 2026 Winter Olympics offers a timely occasion to reconsider the intricate relationship between sport and political power. Far from being mere sporting spectacles, the Olympic Games belong to a broader category of global mega-events characterized by extensive media visibility, substantial fi nancial commitments and a strong capacity to mobilize international tourism. As such, they function not only as stages for athletic performance but also as politically charged arenas in which power is projected, national identities are negotiated, and competing narratives of legitimacy and international order are advanced and contested. This volume explores the Olympic Games – and sport more generally – as a lens through which to observe the evolving dynamics of world politics, highlighting how the sporting arena operates as a site of power, symbolic representation, and political legitimation. Drawing on diverse theoretical perspectives, the contributions examine historical and contemporary cases of international sport politics by foregrounding actors, institutions, norms, and governance structures, interrogating claims of neutrality, and assessing sport’s role in today’s global order.