Sport, Politics, and Diplomacy: Perspectives on Durban's (South Africa) Bid to Host the 2022 Commonwealth Games

ABSTRACT

This article investigates the wider implications of the Commonwealth Games Federation’s decision to withdraw the invitation to South Africa’s potential host city, Durban to host the 2022 Commonwealth Games. A host city has the unique opportunity to communicate with extensive global, regional and national networks through the intersection of sport, politics and diplomacy. The advantages derived from these events are not restricted to a diplomatic level: hosting a major sporting event generates international prestige, establishes strong credentials for the host city/nation, and develops infrastructure countrywide by prompting urban development and renewal. The critical question here is how to evaluate Durban’s loss of the hosting rights against the background of the country’s successful staging of the 2010 FIFA Soccer World Cup. We interrogate three crucial issues: Has the inability to host the Commonwealth Games dented South Africa’s international prestige? Has an opportunity to benefit from public diplomacy been lost? Will this loss affect potential urban and infrastructural regeneration?

Disclosure statement

No potential conflict of interest was reported by the authors.