Ninth International Conference on Sport & Society

Abstract

Since the advent of its nation-state building process, Iran has struggled to define its national identity in a relevant and resonant way. While acknowledging the multi-dimensional nature of Iran’s national identity, this paper historically examines how Iranian governments have used sport to promote their own preferred narrative of Iranian identity. It first explores the relationship between sport and national culture and then examines the ways in which sport could be used to help government to gain its objective of territorial integrity, legitimacy and citizenship commitment. This introduction then followed by historical analysis of particular problems of identity faced by the country and the sport policies adopted by Iranian governments to overcome them. It concluded that sport possess a powerful symbolism that could be used to consolidate a national sense of belonging and togetherness even in an ethnically, religiously and linguistically diverse country like Iran.