Abstract

This special issue explores the contested concept of neutrality in the relationship between sport and politics, and in sport studies. Amid rising geopolitical tensions and ideological polarization, neutrality is increasingly seen as untenable or politically loaded. Our article examines how neutrality functions as both a political position and a site of conflict: in international sport governance and in research on sport. Based on the contributions in this special issue, we argue that the concept of neutrality must be rethought as a shifting, negotiated stance rather than a fixed or apolitical ideal.