Sports have always captured the global imagination, and the significance of sports and physical activity for overall health and well-being is widely recognised. However, in recent years, sport has emerged as a powerful vehicle for diplomatic engagement, bridging differences, promoting peace and reconciliation, advancing human rights, and mobilizing collective action towards the SDGs. Around the world, member states are increasingly developing sports diplomacy strategies and embedding them within their government operations. Countries are formally designating sports diplomats and sports ambassadors, reflecting a growing international consensus on sport as a diplomatic tool.
The United Nations uses Sports Diplomacy to foster peace, development, and social cohesion globally, recognizing the unifying power of sports in bridging divides. In light of this, the UN implements programmes that empower marginalized groups, including women, girls, persons with disabilities, and refugees, such as Football For The Goals (FFTG). By collaborating with governments, international organizations, civil society, and the private sector, these initiatives accelerate the adoption of the SDGs, increasing access to education and socio-economic opportunities through sports-based interventions and fundraising.
With increasing attention focused on the interlinkages between sports, business, and diplomacy, there is a rising demand for professionals who possess the practical skills to adeptly harness the power of sports as a tool for international relations. To sustain and enhance these efforts, and to continue to leverage and unleash the potential for sports to drive positive change in the world UNITAR offers an array of activities in the field of sports.
If you would like to learn more about UNITAR’s work in the field of sports diplomacy, please see the document below or reach out to marcal.jane@unitar.org.
How UNITAR Delivers Customised Sports Diplomacy Training
UNITAR translates the principles of sports diplomacy into practice through fully customised training and capacity-building programmes.
All programmes are designed in close collaboration with partners to reflect their specific priorities, operational contexts, and professional profiles of participants, ensuring customization according to individual and institutional needs. Learning objectives, content, formats, and expert contributions are tailored to ensure relevance, practical application, and measurable value.
The examples below illustrate UNITAR’s approach to bespoke capacity-building in sports diplomacy:
February 2024
UNITAR delivered a tailored executive training programme in partnership with the Leaders Development Institute (LDI), Ministry of Sport, Saudi Arabia, focused on sports diplomacy as a practical leadership and policy tool. The programme strengthened participants’ capacity to engage effectively in international sports environments, apply diplomatic protocol and governance frameworks, and leverage sport as a platform for international cooperation, soft power, and strategic influence.
A short video from the programme can be viewed here.
December 2025
UNITAR welcomed a delegation of 28 Saudi women to Geneva for a tailored capacity-building program requested by and delivered in partnership with the Leaders Development Institute (LDI), Ministry of Sport, Saudi Arabia. The program was designed to strengthen participants’ leadership voice, strategic vision, and influence within the sporting sector. Participants honed public speaking, persuasive communication, and negotiation skills while exploring strategies to build decision-making confidence, resilient leadership mindsets, and inclusive leadership practices.
Through analysis of case studies, application of international human rights frameworks, and engagement with real-world examples, they deepened their understanding of how sports can advance gender equality and human rights. Experiential visits to institutions such as the IOC and UEFA further enriched learning by connecting theory with practice in sports governance and diplomacy
A short video from the programme can be viewed here.
Multilateral Initiatives
UNITAR supports initiatives that bring together governments, international organizations, and other stakeholders to build capacity, share knowledge, and develop practical strategies for integrating sports into foreign and domestic policy whilst advancing multilateral objectives.
Promoting Sport for Development and Peace: Co-Creating Culture through Sport and Diplomacy
May 2025
To mark the International Day of Sport for Development and Peace, the United Nations Institute for Training and Research (UNITAR), in collaboration with the Japan Sport Council (JSC), proudly hosted a special event on 4 May 2025 at the Expo 2025, Osaka, Kansai, Japan. Featuring cutting-edge sport-tech activities, the event offered participants an opportunity to reflect on the role of sport in fostering social inclusion, peacebuilding, and sustainable development. To learn more about the event, click here.
Beyond the Game, A Sports Diplomacy Webinar Series
In these free and open series, participants learn about the value of mega sporting events in global economic diplomacy, cultural diplomacy, and public diplomacy. They learn about the various stakeholders involved in sports diplomacy, including governments, sports federations, NGOs, and civil society, and analyse strategies for effectively engaging and supporting these actors as well as the role of mega-sporting events like the Asian Games, FIFA World Cup and the Olympic Games. Attendees also learn about the intersection of sports and human rights, examining how sports can promote social justice and influence human rights outcomes. They also learn about the stakeholders in sports diplomacy – governments, sports federations, NGOs, and civil society – and analyze strategies to engage and support them.
Past webinar series
Sports and Diplomacy: Leveraging Sporting Events to Strengthen Multilateralism
In this webinar, which took place on 26 July 2024, on the occasion of the opening day of the XXXIII Olympiad (Paris 2024 Summer Olympic Games), Dr. Simon Rofe, a leading expert in sports diplomacy and an Olympic consultant, explores how sports foster international cooperation, peace, and the Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs). As a pioneer in this field, he shares valuable insights from his extensive experience in education, training, and consultancy across sports and diplomacy.
The Role of Sports Diplomacy in Advancing Human Rights
In this webinar, which took place on 9 August 2024, David Grevemberg, Chief Innovations & Partnerships Officer at the Center for Sport and Human Rights, explores the challenges and strategies for integrating human rights into sports, addressing key issues like labour rights, inclusion, and responsible business practices while emphasizing the power of human-centric leadership in driving meaningful change.
Sports and City Diplomacy: The Paris Olympic Games as a Case Study
This webinar, which took place on 23 August 2024, explores sports and city diplomacy through a case study on Paris and its 2024 Olympic strategies, led by Dr. Lorenzo Kihlgren Grandi, Director at the City Diplomacy Lab, examining how mega-sporting events like the Olympics can be leveraged for diplomatic and developmental objectives by highlighting the intersection of sports, urban development, and global diplomacy.
Our Community of Experts
Dr J Simon Rofe is a world-leading expert in Sports Diplomacy. One of the founders of the field, Simon currently serves as the special advisor to the United Kingdom’s Sports Diplomacy Working Group; a standing member of UNESCO’s Intergovernmental Committee for Physical Education and Sport (CIGEPS) and was a member of LOCOG, the Organising Committee for the London Olympic Games in 2012. He has worked with numerous stakeholders from across the sporting and diplomatic realms offering education, training and consultancy, and is widely published including the foundation text: "Sport and Diplomacy: more than a Game"
Mr. David Grevemberg CBE is the Games Delivery Executive for Deloitte Technology (D.TEC), leading the integration and delivery of technology services in support of the LA28 Olympic & Paralympic Games, and is an independent sports advisor. He previously worked as Chief Innovation and Partnerships Officer at the Centre for Sport and Human Rights, and CEO of the Commonwealth Games Federation, after his role as CEO of the Glasgow 2014 Commonwealth Games.
Earlier, from 1999 to 2009, he was the Executive Director of Sport and International Federation Relations at the International Paralympic Committee in Bonn, Germany – and, amongst several responsibilities, oversaw the administration of IPC Alpine and Nordic Skiing disciplines. A native of New Orleans, Louisiana, Grevemberg was an international competitive wrestler and is now a competing masters-level Black Belt in Brazilian Jiu-jitsu. With a 29-year career in sports management, he has served as an athlete agent, team manager, coach, consultant, and board director for numerous charities. He has received several international recognitions, honours, and awards for his service to global sport.
Dr. Lorenzo Kihlgren Grandi is the founding director of the City Diplomacy Lab and a lecturer in City Diplomacy at Sciences Po, École Polytechnique, and Columbia in Paris. He regularly advises international organizations, national governments, city networks, and municipalities on how to fully unfold the added value of city diplomacy. Author of City Diplomacy (Palgrave Macmillan, 2020), he holds a dual PhD in Political Theory from École des Hautes Études en Sciences Sociales (EHESS, Paris) and Libera Università Internazionale degli Studi Sociali (LUISS, Rome).
Dr. Lindsay Sarah Krasnoff is a globally-recognized sports diplomacy expert specializing in Franco-United States relations through sports. Author of Basketball Empire: France and the Making of a Global NBA and WNBA (Bloomsbury, 2023) and The Making of Les Bleus: Sport in France, 1958-2010 (Lexington Books, 2013), her work on global sports has appeared with outlets like TIME, CNN International, The Athletic, The Washington Post, The New Yorker. Outside her consulting practice, she directs the FranceAndUS project and is an Adjunct Instructor at New York University’s Tisch Institute for Global Sport. A veteran of the U.S. Department of State’s Office of the Historian, Krasnoff holds a B.A. from George Washington University; M.A. from NYU; PhD in History from The Graduate Center, City University of New York.
Ms. Etsuko Yamada serves as the Head of International Sport for Development at the Japan Sport Council, where she focuses on integrating Sport for Development and Peace (SDP) into national and local policies. She provides strategic recommendations to Japanese government entities to enhance the impact of SDP initiatives. Together with the Swiss Academy for Development (SA4D) and sportanddev, they developed the guidebook "Bridging the Divide in Sport and Sustainable Development: A Guide for Translating Policy into Practice and Effective Programme Management," which aims to build capacity for policymakers and practitioners in using sport as a tool for sustainable development. Additionally, she is a member of the supervisory committee evaluating the impact and legacy strategy for the Paris 2024 Olympics.
Prior to her current role, Ms. Yamada worked as a Programme Officer at the United Nations Office on Sport for Development and Peace (UNOSDP) in Geneva, where she promoted SDP policies and projects on a global scale.