The effects of holding world sports competitions on improving Iran's position at the international level

Subject Areas : Innovation in Sports Management

mohammad javad tahmasebi ¹ , masoud naderian Jahromi ^{2 *} , حسین دست برحق ³

1 - Ph. D student in Sports Management, Jahrom Branch, Islamic Azad University, Jahrom, Iran
2 - Associate Professor, Department of Sports Management, University of Isfahan, Isfahan, Iran
3 - Assistant Professor, Department of Physical Education and Sports Sciences, Jahrom Branch, Islamic Azad University, Jahrom, Iran

Received: 2025-04-21 Accepted : 2025-06-15 Published : 2025-10-05

Keywords: Sports Diplomacy, Development of Relations, International Relations, championship,

Abstract :

Holding a major sporting event is both a sign of the economic development of the host society and an indicator of outstanding social progress worldwide, and a very effective tool for promoting the culture and products of the host region and city. This issue is very important in today's business world and the importance of media advertising. The overall goal of the present study was to investigate the effects of holding global sporting competitions on improving Iran's international standing. The research method was a sequential mixed type (qualitative-quantitative) and consisted of two stages. In the qualitative stage, using the meta-synthesis method, those indicators that improve the international standing of countries, including Iran, at the global level as a result of holding prestigious global competitions were extracted from scientific databases. Then, to identify the indicators related to these components, 12 experts were purposefully selected and interviewed based on their experience and expertise in various fields of sports and international relations. In the quantitative stage, 46 experts were selected to rank the extracted components and were examined and ranked using SPSS and PLS software. The results of the study showed that nine general components including international branding and prestige, cultural development, political development, economic development, infrastructure development, peace and friendship, national unity and convergence, media interactions, and intelligent power development were identified as the effects of holding global sports competitions in improving Iran's position at the international level and play a fundamental role. Also, after analyzing the content of interviews with experts, 34 items were extracted and ranked for the identified components. In order to improve Iran's international image, it is suggested that officials and managers prioritize hosting prestigious global competitions in cities, especially tourism centers, and develop sports tourism development infrastructure through competitions. It is suggested that they take fundamental steps to improve Iran's international image by regularly attending relevant meetings, participating in competitions, holding international sports summits within the country, holding official international competitions in various sports disciplines, and obtaining international sports seats. It is suggested that future research examines the roles of sports in politics and culture separately.

 

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