Sports Governing Bodies and Human Rights

Sports governing bodies like the International Olympic Committee (IOC), the Fédération Internationale de Football Association (FIFA), Commonwealth Games Federation and International Paralympic Committee (IPC) set the rules that all other actors are expected to follow when delivering an MSE, ranging from the criteria around transport, accommodation, and ticketing allocations, to the procedures for
the opening and closing ceremonies. As such, these bodies are in a strong position to set requirements that advance respect for human rights and help reduce any adverse rights impacts associated with these events.

This report outlines what is at stake when it comes to human rights and the role of sports governing bodies, the responses various bodies have taken, as well as a set of recommendations for every sports governing body to ensure respect for human rights throughout the MSE lifecycle.

The material in this report was originally written for the www.megasportingevents.org website to expand on and advance the research contained in IHRB’s 2013 report “Striving for Excellence: Mega-Sporting Events and Human Rights”. It is accurate and up to date as of May 2014. The www.megasportingevents.org website has since been updated and the original content replaced. The original content has been archived into this series of short reports to maintain their usefulness as early contributions to the body of research on mega-sporting events and human rights.