Author: Iva Miteva, EAL Specialist

Summer 2024 is not by any means short of worldwide sporting events. In fact, it is packed with something for every single sports fan – there is the UEFA European Football Championship, Tour de France for multiple-stage bike races, the Wimbledon Tennis Championship, the Monaco Grand Prix for Formula 1 motor racing, the Summer Olympic Games and so much more.

At these events, athletes and audiences alike speak the universal language of sport. Where athletes are united by simple and easy-to-follow rules in a specific sport, audiences mostly rely on non-verbal and universally understood clues, such as gestures, body language and physical actions by the players and referees (for example, even a non-football fan knows what a red card in a football match means).

Sport is such a powerful force that brings cultures together through forming connections, fostering a global mind and appreciating diversity. Athletes and fans travel worldwide to follow their favourite sports teams and share emotions. Sport allows them to unite in a celebration of a win or to console each other when their team loses. You do not need to speak the language of the person next to you at such a moment. The raised arms, the handshakes, the hugs and the high-fives or the intense stare, the headshake, the pointing and the head in hands say it all for you.

Moreover, sports are played and watched all over the world and often involve rituals, symbols and traditions that are followed and understood by everyone regardless of where they are from. One such example is the Olympic flame that symbolises harmony, goodwill and unity – values that are highly respected across cultures.

According to Jarvie (2023): ‘The contemporary world needs spaces that can hold a plurality of politics. Spaces which engage with ordinary people and cultures with all their varied histories and disagreements. Sport can be one such space.’

Athletes are often role models to younger generations and there is a certain emphasis on collaboration and team spirit. But most of all, sports unite us all with that ultimate passion, contagious enthusiasm and endless bonding over a favourite sport or a team by being able to share the same experience regardless of language, culture, religion or race.

Reference

Jarvie, G. (2023). Sport, Cultural Relations, and Peacebuilding. British Council. Link here