What does this research mean for the field?

Saudi Arabia strategically leverages sports tourism as a tool of soft power, cultural diplomacy, and nation branding to cultivate a modernized global identity and advance its Vision 2030 objectives, though the ultimate efficacy of this strategy is complicated by international critiques of sportswashing. Novelty: ClaimNovelty.INCREMENTAL. Consensus alignment: ConsensusAlignment.NEUTRAL.

What question did this study set out to answer?

To examine how Saudi Arabia deploys sports tourism within Vision 2030 to cultivate international soft power, diversify its economy, and address global reputational challenges.

September 5, 2026International Journal of Sport Policy and Politics

Saudi Arabia’s soft power play through sports tourism and “sportswashing”

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Authors

JJJoonoh Jeong

Discussion

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Overview

Qualitative analysis demonstrates how sports tourism drives soft power and nation branding in Saudi Arabia, highlighting ongoing tensions between strategic modernization and sportswashing critiques.

Key Points

To examine how Saudi Arabia deploys sports tourism within Vision 2030 to cultivate international soft power, diversify its economy, and address global reputational challenges.
Conducted qualitative analyses of national policy documents and media discourse.
Analyzed an exclusive qualitative interview from the Ministry of Investment of Saudi Arabia (MISA).
Applied the Push-Pull theory of tourism motivation to assess domestic development drivers against international sporting draws.
Showed that elite sports, especially football, operate as strategic levers for economic diversification, regional hegemony, and global nation branding.
Found that the sustained geopolitical effectiveness of sports statecraft hinges on whether initiatives yield authentic domestic structural reform rather than facing dismissal as reputational sportswashing.

Cite This Study

Joonoh Jeong (2026) studied this question.

synapsesocial.com/papers/6a9bd4046b95aff0620eb54d https://doi.org/10.1080/19406940.2026.2722918

View Full Paper

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September 5, 2026International Journal of Sport Policy and Politics

Saudi Arabia’s soft power play through sports tourism and “sportswashing”

View Full Paper

Ask AI

Bookmark

Authors

JJJoonoh Jeong

Discussion

Member takes

Overview

Qualitative analysis demonstrates how sports tourism drives soft power and nation branding in Saudi Arabia, highlighting ongoing tensions between strategic modernization and sportswashing critiques.

Key Points

To examine how Saudi Arabia deploys sports tourism within Vision 2030 to cultivate international soft power, diversify its economy, and address global reputational challenges.
Conducted qualitative analyses of national policy documents and media discourse.
Analyzed an exclusive qualitative interview from the Ministry of Investment of Saudi Arabia (MISA).
Applied the Push-Pull theory of tourism motivation to assess domestic development drivers against international sporting draws.
Showed that elite sports, especially football, operate as strategic levers for economic diversification, regional hegemony, and global nation branding.
Found that the sustained geopolitical effectiveness of sports statecraft hinges on whether initiatives yield authentic domestic structural reform rather than facing dismissal as reputational sportswashing.

Cite This Study

Joonoh Jeong (2026) studied this question.

synapsesocial.com/papers/6a9bd4046b95aff0620eb54d https://doi.org/10.1080/19406940.2026.2722918

View Full Paper

Ask AI

Bookmark