The History of Sportswashing: Using Sport To Clean Up A Tainted Reputation

by David Carlton

Sportswashing is a growing trend used by countries and organizations to improve their public image and distract from their negative actions. The terminology may be new, but the concept is as old as time .

Read this book to gain a deeper understanding of the dark side of sports, including the corruption, cheating, and impact of sportswashing on society and democracy.

The topics covered will give you insight into the inextricable link between sports and politics, the significance of sports for nations, and why sports can never truly be neutral.
Inside The History of Sportswashing , discover Whether you are a sports fan, political enthusiast, or simply interested in the intersection between sports and society, this book is the ultimate resource you need to understand the practice of sportswashing and everything it affects.

From the rise of fascism in the 1930s to the controversial 2022 World Cup in Qatar, The History of Sportswashing is a thought-provoking and comprehensive examination of a topic that has far-reaching consequences.

If you’re ready to take a critical look at the role of sports in our world, grab yourself a copy today and join the conversation.

149 pages, Paperback

Published June 7, 2023

Reviews

[Steve Dent · Rating 4 out of 5]

Very good, quick read. The focus is on authoritative governments using sports as an avenue to whitewash their ills away. To place an emphasis on sports to distract from human rights violations. Saudi Arabia is front and center along with Qatar. Human rights violations, their handling of migrant workers leading up to the World Cup games was atrocious. But hey, what a great tournament they had. Let's not focus on the slave wages and horrendous living conditions of the workers, let's celebrate the richness and beauty of our country.

Was surprised not to see Lance Armstrong in the doping section of the book. LIV Golf was rightfully pointed out in the piece.

Culprits seemed to focus primarily on FIFA and the World Cup bids, the Olympics and specifically, Saudi Arabia, Russia, Qatar, Italy and Brazil.

Interesting read, albeit brief...

[Yorben Geerinckx · Rating 4 out of 5]

Sportswashing is een erg complex fenomeen om uit te leggen, maar David Carlton slaagt er al bij al goed in. Hoewel de materie af en toe wel erg ingewikkeld wordt, biedt een duidelijke structuur houvast. Carlton legt eerst kort uit wat sportswashing is en illustreert het met verschillende voorbeelden, waarna hij het fenomeen vervolgens linkt aan de bredere maatschappij en zo verschillende facetten ervan belicht.

Bovendien bekijkt Carlton sportswashing vanuit verschillende standpunten: dat van zij die er zich schuldig aan maken en dat van de clubs die ervoor gebruikt worden, van de aanklagers, van supporters, ... Uiteindelijk schetst de auteur zo een erg volledig beeld van het fenomeen.

[Chris Roberts · Rating 3 out of 5]

Authoritarian countries deserve the criticism they received in this book. Western countries and companies seemed to practically go untouched throughout though which seems either naive or purposely ignorant. (Nike sponsoring high profile athletes despite evident sweatshop practices, US college sports scandals and their use of sports to revive their reputation, Coca Cola sponsoring world cups despite unethical practices, gambling is basically the face of all UK football leagues and teams). I don’t think these countries and companies are as bad as the authoritarian examples he gave, but less bad does not mean they are exempt of justified criticism and mentioning in this book.