FIFA, BRICS, and the Soft Power Discourse: Analysis of the World Cup in South Africa, Brazil, and Russia

As South Africa, Brazil, and Russia hosted the FIFA World Cup this century, we may state that these countries had a strategic interest in hosting this mega-event. In the specific case of this chapter, we shall analyze the way these countries used mega sporting events as a discourse to expand their soft power. We are not taking the category of soft power in a naive way, knowing that it is sometimes used as a justification for hosting mega-events, being considered as one of its intangible legacies. Some issues will be raised to deepen this theme: (a) There are academic discussions about FIFA choosing these countries because they are fragile democracies, therefore easier to legislative changes; (b) places with endemic corruption, which would facilitate FIFA’s deals with global partners and the local political elite. From this discussion, we propose two sub-areas of analysis: (i) soft power in the context of the globalized world and (ii) use of mega sporting events by peripheral nations to increase their soft power.