What Makes International Sport “International”?

Abstract

The term international appears frequently in sports research—across titles, abstracts, and journal names—because it signals reach, scope, and significance. Yet many studies that use this label rely exclusively on data from a single country, league, or institution. This raises a fundamental question: What should international mean in sport scholarship, and what obligations follow when authors invoke it?

This is not an argument against single-context research. Studies rooted in a single country or community provide essential, detailed knowledge: they illuminate histories, policies, and lived experiences that might otherwise go unseen. The challenge lies in addressing the gap between description and claim. A study conducted in one setting can legitimately speak to broader issues, but those claims must be supported by explicit reasoning rather than assumed by virtue of a global label alone. Clearer standards would make the term international more meaningful and the field more rigorous.