The neutrality paradox in sport : governance, politics and human rights after Ukraine
Author(s)
Bibliographic Information
The neutrality paradox in sport : governance, politics and human rights after Ukraine
(Palgrave pivot)
Palgrave Macmillan, c2022
- : hbk
Available at 2 libraries
  Aomori
  Iwate
  Miyagi
  Akita
  Yamagata
  Fukushima
  Ibaraki
  Tochigi
  Gunma
  Saitama
  Chiba
  Tokyo
  Kanagawa
  Niigata
  Toyama
  Ishikawa
  Fukui
  Yamanashi
  Nagano
  Gifu
  Shizuoka
  Aichi
  Mie
  Shiga
  Kyoto
  Osaka
  Hyogo
  Nara
  Wakayama
  Tottori
  Shimane
  Okayama
  Hiroshima
  Yamaguchi
  Tokushima
  Kagawa
  Ehime
  Kochi
  Fukuoka
  Saga
  Nagasaki
  Kumamoto
  Oita
  Miyazaki
  Kagoshima
  Okinawa
  Korea
  China
  Thailand
  United Kingdom
  Germany
  Switzerland
  France
  Belgium
  Netherlands
  Sweden
  Norway
  United States of America
Note
Includes bibliographical references and index
Description and Table of Contents
Description
Following Russia's invasion of Ukraine in early 2022, sanctions were implemented that banned Russia from most international sports. As a result, sport governing bodies (SGBs) have made a marked shift in their tradition of neutrality, to a point of no return. In light of this, this book asks what is next for SGBs. It provides an analysis of the root problem that sport governing bodies have had with politics since their inception: a paradoxical treatment of neutrality. This can be evidenced by their awarding of Mega-Sport Events to authoritarian states and also through the SGBs' own desire to make a difference by promoting human rights and sustainable development. Good or bad, the author argues that their neutrality principles are invalidated by their actions.
Offering interdisciplinary research with empirical examples, this issue is explored in an engaging, yet analytical way, making it valuable reading for researchers and students interested in sport management, for organisations and also policy makers. This book presents a pioneering study of neutrality and autonomy in sport in light of the Ukraine crisis, and addresses a growing appetite in academia on how sport governing bodies will reconcile their commitments to societal progress, whilst maintaining neutrality.
Table of Contents
Chapter 1: Introduction: The changing role of Sport Governing Bodies
Neutrality is not a neutral word. Users of it must justify its content in order for it to make sense in given situations and contexts. Sport governing bodies (SGBs) have, however, escaped this simple requirement for more than a century. Resorting to the adage that sport and politics don't mix, and that they therefore have no obligation to state their view on even the gravest of episodes where sport is used for political purposes is no longer justifiable. At the same time, considering the geopolitical landscape of 2022, there is little realism to be found among those who demand that FIFA become a world police of sorts or a global activist carrying the flag of human rights. But what FIFA and other SGBs can do is to assess the use of neutrality anew to strengthen their autonomy and credibility in social issues. This chapter outlines several reasons why the concept of neutrality is a relevant place to start - especially as not taking a stand is also a stand.
Chapter 2: Neutrality - A contested concept
This chapter outlines some reasons why the meaning of 'neutrality', and the uses of it, is much more diverse than Sport Governing Bodies (SGBs) usually take into account. It is crucial to acknowledge this diversity because of the geopolitical role SGBs have in modern society. Many states want to host major sport events in order to boost their national image, as a way to attract tourists and investments, and to make an entry into the global political elite. Others see SGBs as key partners in achieving social progress through human rights and sustainability provisions. This role inevitably involvees a political dimension. For that reason, this chapter discusses the ramifications of neutrality along three dimensions - epistemological, moral, pragmatic - and how they correspond with the legal, diplomatic and political/ideological dimensions of neutrality. Lessons are gathered from humanitarian NGOs and diplomatic ventures and contextualised with references to thinkers like J.S. Mill and Karl Popper.
Chapter 3: The politics of human rights and sustainable development goals
Promoting human rights and the UN's sustainable development goals are, despite their universal ambitions, not apolitical causes. They are the result of political debate and compromise and are not carved in stone. This flux requires sport governing bodies (SGBs) to acknowledge their political engagement when they integrate human rights and sustainable development goals (SDGs) in their work. There is too much at stake, the SGBs are too powerful to be silent, and, as in the case of the 2022 FIFA Qatar World Cup, there is a growing risk that the consequences of evading the question will surpass those of actually making a stand. This chapter outlines what it is about these topics that makes them political, and why SGBs consequently become political when implementing the UN Guiding Principles on Business and Human Rights and sustainability measures into their bidding requirements for large sport events. Finally, the chapter discusses the political potential of merging human rights and SDGs, which according to the UN is key to making sport governing bodies contribute more to the world's social progress.
Chapter 4: Towards a renewed autonomy of sport governing bodies
This chapter integrates the key trends of the discussions in previous chapters and reconnects with the claim in Chapter 1 that sport governing bodies (SGBs) need to reconsider the ethical foundation, policy content and practice of neutrality. Although the Russian invasion of Ukraine has meant that SGBs abandoned their neutrality in solidarity with the victims of war and as a way to side with the political condemnation of warfare, there will be situations in the future that will challenge the SGBs' current idea of neutrality even without a war. These situations will most likely be even more complex and with less obvious outcomes than in the case of Ukraine when it comes to selecting governance options. Realistically speaking, no scholarly work will make SGBs fully prepared for this future. What this last chapter aims to do instead is to provide some insight into what it will take to seek preparation. By outlining some elements of a renewed autonomy for SGBs, it underlines the importance of looking forward instead of backward in search of legitimate neutrality principles.
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