Sportswashing with Chinese Characteristics

The use of sportswashing to enhance a country’s international reputation is often described in academic discourse as a foreign relations strategy adopted primarily by Muslim governments in the Middle East and Eurasia. However, sportswashing actually has far broader applicability within business and society than previous researchers have recognized. Looking closely at the relationship between the government of the People’s Republic of China (PRC) and the hosting of international sports, this article shows that the PRC, beginning under the leadership of Deng Xiaoping, has engaged in efforts to host global, commercial sporting events for purposes of detracting attention from the country’s alleged human rights abuses and its perception of being weak during the Century of Humiliation.1 This article is important to the broader study of business, law, and society because it helps us to better understand the intersection between the hosting of international sporting events, big business, government interests, and social outcomes. It also allows us to better understand how, if at all, public and private law could be applied to sportswashing behaviors.