Amplifying democracy in and through sport

"Now is the time to reaffirm that democracy, development, and human rights are interdependent and mutually reinforcing.” - António Guterres, UN Secretary-General (2022)

Often when we hear the term democracy, we think immediately of its Greek origins related to the political process, with people being allowed to have their voices heard at voting time. While this is certainly one image of democracy, its reach is actually much broader. As a matter of fact, democracy should not be restricted to the traditionally political realm but should be applied across other areas and institutions of society - education, business, and yes, even sport. 

What exactly do we mean when we use the term democracy? Have a look at what the United Nations defines as some of the essential elements of democracy, and the sport examples provided that illustrate them. According to the United Nations, there are a number of essential elements of democracy. Some of these can be tied directly to sport:

• Respect for human rights and fundamental freedoms
  Dignity and humanity of athletes, workers, volunteers, officials, etc.
  Example: People working to build sport facilities and city infrastructure for mega-sporting events should be paid a fair wage and have access to healthy working and living conditions
• Freedom of association
  People are independent and free to organize. 
  Example: Professional athletes should not be treated simply as profit generators for their organizations, but rather should be valued as people with rights representing their organizations and be able to organize unions.
• Freedom of expression and opinion
  Athlete advocacy. 
  Example: Athletes should be free to express their opinions on social issues within the settings of their sport such as on medal podiums and/or during pre-game activities.
• Transparency and accountability in public administration
  Sport organizations need to be open to adhering to accountability and transparency. 
  Example: Policy development and financial decisions should involve the greatest number of directly affected individuals as possible via avenues such as stakeholder advisory groups and athlete councils.
• Free, independent and pluralistic media
  Sport must be open to diverse media coverage. 
  Example: Media needs to provide coverage not just of major professional male sport but also of women’s sport, indigenous sport, sport for people with disabilities, and should openly cover sport and social issues.

Not only should democracy be present in sport, but one could also argue it must be at the heart of sport.  Hopefully, future international work in the area of democracy will intentionally include and engage with sport. The essential elements of democracy presented above must be discussed and integrated within sport institutions and systems.

If we are aiming for democracy in the world, then we must also work to achieve democracy in and through sport. Sport cannot be exempt from discussions of democracy and neither can democracy be exempt from discussions of sport. These discussions cannot just be words on paper, however, but must be lived and implemented in daily organizational practice. How can this take place? 

Democracy can be lived daily on and off the field. We learn about democracy in sport on the field through the values sport teaches like teamwork, respect and responsibility. We must learn to then transfer these values of democracy on the field into dimensions and areas of sport off the field as well.

Amplifying democracy in and through sport can enhance and improve the world of sport. Keeping democracy in mind enables us to foster a more equitable and inclusive sporting community and culture. Bringing attention to the elements of democracy will help build, evolve and transform sport overall. Embracing, integrating and utilizing democracy as a tool to improve sport can prove to be a vehicle to facilitate positive change beyond the playing field. 

"Democracy is as much a process as a goal, and only with the full participation of and support by the international community, national governing bodies, civil society and individuals, can the ideal of democracy be made into a reality to be enjoyed by everyone, everywhere."  - United Nations, International Day of Democracy (2022)

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Eli A. Wolff directs the Power of Sport Lab, a platform to fuel and magnify creativity, diversity, connection, and leadership through sport. He is an instructor with the Sport Management program at the University of Connecticut, and he is co-founder and advisor to Sport and Society initiatives at Brown University, Eli serves as a co-organizer for the Athletes and Social Change forum with the Muhammad Ali Center. 

Mary A. Hums, Ph.D. is a Professor of Sport Administration at the University of Louisville. Hums has co-authored/co-edited 5 Sport Management textbooks, over 150 articles and book chapters and made over 200 presentations to various scholarly associations both in the United States and abroad. Her main research interest is policy development in sport organizations, especially in regard to inclusion of people with disabilities and also sport and human rights.