The impact of political factors on the sports movement in Iraq

Abstract

The research aims to identify the impact of political factors on the sports movement in Iraq through four main axes: political and security stability and its impact on the sports movement, government policies and sports legislation, political intervention and sports governance, and funding and sports infrastructure under political factors. The researcher used the descriptive method, as it was suitable for the nature of the research. The researcher selected a random sample of 108 individuals working in the sports field in Iraq, and the researcher relied on a questionnaire form to collect the data. The results of the first axis showed that the unstable security situation negatively affects the performance of athletes, and that political instability limits the participation of Iraqi teams in international championships and contributes to the emigration of sports talents from the country. The second point indicated that sports policies need to be updated to keep pace with contemporary changes, and that sports laws contribute to protecting the rights of athletes, but the state does not have clear policies for developing the sports movement, and the current sports legislation does not keep pace with the approved international standards. In the third section, the results showed that the lack of administrative independence affects sports decision-making, and that sports governance is a fundamental element in sports development. The results confirmed that good governance contributes to improving institutional sports performance, while political interference weakens the efficiency of sports leaders and hinders the achievement of fairness within sports institutions. Regarding the fourth point, the results revealed that sports are overly reliant on government support, that sports infrastructure is insufficient to meet current needs, and that sports institutions suffer from a lack of financial resources. Furthermore, government policies are not contributing to the development of sports facilities.