Global Series: Political Sport

Manifestao - Sports is never just a game and often political, as Brazil learned well during its 2014 World Cup.

Senado Federal /flickr , CC BY-SA

Catesby Holmes , The Conversation ; Clea Chakraverty , The Conversation ; Fabrice Rousselot , The Conversation , and Stephan Schmidt , The Conversation

Sport is much more than a game, as fans everywhere would attest.

In the developing world, athletics can play an outsized role in society, serving as a political tool, a lucrative and legal exit plan and a font of national pride. As the Uruguayan author Eduardo Galeano wrote, [T]he player who embodies the nation marches off to win glory on far-off battlefields. If he returns defeated, the warrior becomes a fallen angel.

The Conversations Political sport series investigates how cricket, football and rugby are shaking things up across the world, from the Caribbean to Kosovo and beyond.

Can Caribbean cricket get its (political) groove back?

Trinidads semi-professional cricket, long a feeder for Caribbean cricketers to play broad, has lost of its lustre. Tom Hodgkinson/flickr, CC BY-SA , CC BY-SA

Once a sport associated with anti-colonialism, cricket in the Caribbean has become a career path for young men with dreams of wealth and glamour. Might that explain the West Indies cricket teams stunning recent losses? Adnan Hossain

Migration, hope and deceit in the rugby industry

The story depicts a young Wallisian man trying to make it in the world of rugby in France. 3 B Productions

Sport migrations emerge within a general migratory context. In some societies, like the Pacific Islands, adulthood, particularly for men, isnt really complete unless one goes abroad. And thats where rugby comes in. Niko Besnier

How African athletes challenge Western notions of doping

Young footballers dream of places far away and are ready to migrate at all costs. Uro Kova, Author provided, Author provided

What do concepts like cheating and performance enhancement mean to young footballers in West Africa, where the supernatural is seen as a force to be harnessed for athletic success? Uro Kova

In Kosovo, football is more than a sport its a diplomatic win

In Kosovos long struggle to gain international recognition of its statehood, football has helped the country reach some major goals. Loc Trgours

This Hong Kong woman just broke footballs glass ceiling

For most women, coaching a mens team is still off-limits. But, in 2016, a young female football coach from Hong Kong made history, becoming the first woman ever to lead a mens team to a national title. Tobias Zuser

Catesby Holmes , Global Commissioning Editor, The Conversation ; Clea Chakraverty , Commissioning Editor, The Conversation ; Fabrice Rousselot , Global Editor, The Conversation , and Stephan Schmidt , Audience Developer, The Conversation

This article was originally published on The Conversation . Read the original article .