Navigating Political Terrain: Effective University Sports Policy Amidst Global and National Challenges

University sport is a pivotal field at the intersection of education and high-performance athletics, influencing the development of sport sciences as well as the careers of countless student-athletes globally. Over the past decades, the integration between academic institutions and organized sport has diversified across continents, resulting in a rich yet complex mosaic of national and international governance models. While certain countries, such as the United States, position university sport as the principal gateway to elite professional competitions, others—especially in Europe—adopt models where academic and sporting pursuits are more parallel than integrated. At the international level, bodies like the International Federation of University Sport (FISU) and its interplay with the International Olympic Committee (IOC) and affiliated federations further complicate the global governance landscape, highlighting a notable gap in comprehensive comparative research on the subject.Contemporary research has trended toward understanding how university-driven sport influences, and is shaped by, various stakeholders including Sports Associations, National Sports Federations, National Olympic Committees, and the public sector. Evidence suggests that the relationship between universities and national sport systems can yield varied impacts—from direct talent pipelines to policy-driven support for dual career athletes—yet questions persist regarding the alignment of objectives (athletic, educational, economic, and ideological) across different regions and organizational tiers. The degree to which international university sport aligns or competes with mainstream sport governance, the mechanisms of collaboration or divergence, and the influence of political or economic interests remain areas ripe for scholarly exploration.This Research Topic aims to critically examine the governance of university sport at both national and international levels. The key objectives are to map and compare the structures, measure the roles universities play within diverse sports ecosystems, and investigate how these arrangements inform and are informed by broader economic, ideological, and educational ambitions. Particular focus will be given to the dynamic relations among key stakeholders, models of coordination or competition, and the development and implementation of dual-career policies for student-athletes. By questioning whether current models primarily serve athletic achievement or broader socio-political and economic goals, this initiative seeks to advance the theoretical and practical understanding of university sport governance and impact.The scope of this Research Topic encompasses comparative, theoretical, and empirical research into the frameworks, policies, objectives, and inter-organizational relations shaping university sport governance globally. While the central focus remains on the structural and strategic positioning of universities in various sporting systems, manuscripts exploring related economic, educational, or ideological dimensions are also welcome. To gather further insights in this rapidly evolving area, we welcome articles addressing, but not limited to, the following themes:• Structuring and positioning of university sport in national sports systems• Dynamics of relationships between university sport, Sports Associations, National Sports Federations, and the public sector• National universities’ policies regarding student-athletes’ dual careers• Athletic, economic, educational, and social objectives of university sports programs• Structural relations among National University • Sports Federations (NUSF), Continental University Sports Federations (CUSF), and FISU• Interactions between FISU, International Sports Federations (ISFs), and the IOC• The influence of international university sports on global sport objectives and policies Topic editors: Nadim Nassif, Bernardeau-Moreau Denis Source: https://www.frontiersin.org/research-topics/78750/navigating-political-terrain-effective-university-sports-policy-amidst-global-and-national-challenges