Mapping School Sport - Study Released

ISF mapping School Sport in EU

In the framework third edition of the European Week of Sport which took place from 23^rd to 30^th September, the 29^th of September was also the occasion for ISF (International Sport Federation) and Sport and Citizenship, to meet in European committee of the Regions in Brussels for the Active Schools, Active Kids! conference to release the first-ever mapping of school sport in the 28 European member countries.

The conference was hosted by Sport and Citizenship Think tank and gathered experts from the sport and education network including guest speakers such as Oriol Freixa Matalonga, Project officer at UNESCO’s Liaison Office in Brussels, David Blough, director of the NGO Play International, Laska Nenova, NowWeMOVE Campaign Manager at ISCA, Daniel Burrows, senior director Europe, Global Community Impact at Nike and Marisa Fernandez Esteban, Deputy Head of the Sport Unit, European Commission.

Since its establishment in 1974, the International School Sport Federation members increased significantly to reached today 93 members worldwide. Although the criteria to enter the international school sport network remain the same since ever, the ISF wished through this research, to highlight the relation between the national school sport organisations with the sport, physical education and education system in the country to facilitate potential external cooperation with school sport at any level and to enhance the cooperation between school sport organisations.

Released two months after the presentation of the Kazan Action Plan, during the Sixth International Conference of Ministers and Senior Officials Responsible for Physical Education and Sport (14-15^th July 2017), this mapping was imagined as a contribution to support the implementation of the SDGs 2030 where school sport plays an important role at the crossroad between sport, physical education and education.

Indeed the mapping school sport document clarifies specifically the role of school sport in the countries interviewed, their system of governance and type of cooperation while explaining their main projects undertaken for young people from schools and in schools.

With half members based in Europe, the ISF decided to conduct this first initiative as a tool to implement the ISF Vision 2030 which will be enlarged to a wider number of countries the future. 

Find the mapping here