#  Global Sports Initiative 

 



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   ![A group of athletes and scholars pose for a photo standing on a red carpet.](/sites/g/files/omnuum8891/files/styles/hwp_1_1__720x720_scale/public/wcfia/files/researchgroups-gsi-700px.jpg?itok=37bG9hMl) 

 

The [Global Sports Initiative](https://globalsports.wcfia.harvard.edu/) (GSI), a project within the Weatherhead Research Cluster on Global History, seeks to build stronger connections between the worlds of academics and sports. Focusing on sports allows the GSI to contribute to a range of debates—such as immigration, class, and capitalism—to better understand how these subjects relate to issues such as national and other forms of identity, gender relations, race, political economy, and the desire for greater social welfare.

This winter, the GSI sponsored a three-day conference with the Nottingham Forest Football Club titled “[Fighting Racism and Creating Gender Equity in European Football](https://globalsports.wcfia.harvard.edu/event/conference-fighting-racism-and-creating-gender-equity-european-football)” in Nottingham, England. The conference featured former World Cup winners Thierry Henry, Lilian Thuram, Christian Karembeu, and ex-New Zealand player Rebecca (Bex) Smith amongst other current and former football players, putting players in conversation with academics and other people working in the industry.

Scholars presented on a variety of topics, including the current state of racism in European football, as well as how US athletes such as Muhammad Ali and Colin Kaepernick have used their platforms to bring attention to certain issues. Over twenty-four current and former players attended these sessions and later signed a declaration to encourage more players to use their platforms. The second day of the conference featured research on the treatment of players in women’s soccer, a discussion on the importance of cross-sectional analysis, a talk on issues related to migration, and a presentation on the law and football.

The conference complements the research spearheaded by the three 2023–2024 GSI fellows on the relationship between sports and society: Heidi Beha, Fernando Martin Loarte, and Carlos Ocaña Orbis.

Heidi Beha, team lead of Development Programs at FIFA, is working with Mathias Risse, director of the Carr Center for Human Rights Policy at Harvard Kennedy School. Beha’s research focuses on the relationship between large sports organizations and human rights. In the run-up to the 2026 World Cup, FIFA has emphasized gaining a better understanding of what constitutes human rights within sports and on promoting a more robust implementation of human rights policies. To help FIFA think through different possible strategies, Beha’s study looks to determine what might be possible and what types of precedents exist. Her research has raised questions about FIFA’s global governance and about how much the organization can affect policy that strays from its core mission and activities.

Fernando Martín Loarte and Carlos Ocaña Orbis, both from Real Madrid, are working with Stephen Ortega, chair of the Global Sports Initiative, and with Isabel Jijon from the Department of Sociology at Harvard University. Their research focuses on soccer/football fandom of the future. With over 500 million fans, Real Madrid has one of the largest supporter bases in the world, but the organization anticipates that younger people will represent a different type of fan than their older counterparts. After doing a thorough literature review of the available sociological, psychological, historical, and cultural materials, they will create focus groups and then conduct a survey to better understand how the typologies of fandom need to change in lieu of new data and changing circumstances.

*The Weatherhead Global Sports Initiative (GSI) Fellowship program invites applications from current and former athletes and individuals in the sports industry for a competitive one-year fellowship to conduct an individual research project on global issues. For more information, including how to apply, see our* [*website*](https://globalsports.wcfia.harvard.edu)*. To hear more about the work the GSI affiliates do, listen to our recent Epicenter podcast episode on "*[*The Politics of Sports.*](https://epicenter.wcfia.harvard.edu/podcast/ep10-politics-of-sports)*"*

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Current and former players stand in solidarity against racism at the Nottingham Conference on January 31, 2024. *Credit: Ritchie Sumpter*



 



 

 See also:- [ Centerpiece: Spring 2024 ](/newsletter-issues/centerpiece-spring-2024)