The rise of athletes as political figures

Nowadays, it seems like politics is absolutely everywhere (we are in an election year, after all), but one of the most controversial collaborations often comes when our elected leaders leave the swamp and step into the turf; or vice versa, when our favorite athletes exit the court and stand at the pulpit. 

The mixing of sports and politics often causes a degree of controversy, and there is no shortage of debate on the subject. In recent times, the news cycle has been awash with stories of the impact of electoral politics in “America’s sport,” as this year’s Super Bowl ignited several theories, most of them conspiracies, about political interference in the NFL — this prompted an amusing response from President Joe Biden via X, the social media platform formerly known as Twitter.

The politicization of competitive sports and athletes is not at all a novel phenomenon; recency bias might make us more aware of athletes like Megan Rapinoe, Colin Kaepernick and Lewis Hamilton, whose fights for equality in their sport have attracted both admiration and critique (to put it mildly). However, stadiums and the people who compete in them have long been the setting of social movements. 

In the U.S., during the height of the civil rights movement, athletes like Wilma Rudolph, Muhammad Ali and Kareem Abdul-Jabbar were frequently criticized for their commitment to fighting for African Americans. Tommie Smith’s and John Carlos’ Black Power salute at the 1968 Olympics, one of the most recognizable images of the 20th century, brought these protests into an international stage, at great personal and professional cost to the two track and field stars. Jackie Robinson’s entry into Major League Baseball as the first African American in over a century, a move that marked the beginning of the desegregation of the sport, was a watershed moment in Jim Crow America. 

Additionally, sporting competitions have also been the sight of protests on an international stage: Czechoslovak gymnast Vera Čáslavská turned her head away from the Soviet flag during a medal ceremony at the 1968 games in protest of the USSR’s invasion of her home country. 12 years later, the U.S. and 60 other countries boycotted the 1980 Moscow Olympics after the Soviet invasion of Afghanistan. 

Several famous athletes have also come to hold elected office: actor and bodybuilder Arnold Schwarzenegger became governor of California, cricket star Imran Khan became prime minister of Pakistan, soccer player George Weah became president of Liberia, and that’s only a few examples. 

After all, sporting success provides a platform unlike much else — billions of people tune in to sporting matches, and in the age of social media, this translates to followers. Politics is, at its core, a popularity contest; although it differs from the middle school connotation of the word, in that our candidates are not fighting over who has the latest Drunk Elephant product and who knows more TikTok routines. They are, however, fighting for the opinion of regular people like you and me. Politicians court different sectors of society so we believe in their aims, and in return, cast a vote in their favor. 

Biden started the year by strengthening his ties with unionized workers, while Donald Trump rallied supporters in South Carolina to deliver a final blow to Nikki Haley’s campaign. Athletes are in a privileged position when it comes to getting these messages across — their faces are incredibly recognizable and their achievements are publicly lauded. 

Take Imran Khan as an example. He has always been an immensely popular figure in Pakistan, having led the national team to the ICC Men's Cricket World Cup in 1992 as captain, as well as being an Oxford-educated playboy and a philanthropist who established the first cancer hospital in his country. In the ‘92 ICC, supporters chanted a phrase that has followed Khan into his political career: “Who can save Pakistan? It’s Imran Khan!” His mass appeal has made Khan one of the most popular — and divisive — politicians in Pakistan. 

Athletes’ popularity also provides them with a profile to both support causes and endorse political movements. Megan Rapinoe’s World Cup success propelled her fight to secure equal payment for female athletes. The same can be said for Lewis Hamilton, whose 103 race wins have made him the most decorated athlete in Formula 1 history — they have also given him a platform to champion diversity in a sport that has always been predominantly white and male-dominated. When you’re at the top of a podium, it’s more likely that people will listen to what you have to say. 

But even when you’re not, when you’re just standing on turf, the world’s media is still watching — and criticizing. In the 2020 UEFA European Football Championship (Euro 2020), the captain of the German national team Manuel Neuer wore a rainbow armband in honor of Pride Month. When the team played Hungary, a game that occurred on the same day as the Eastern European nation passed a stringent anti-LGBTQ+ bill, Neuer again wore the armband during the entirety of the match. The Union of European Football Associations launched an inquiry into whether he had made a “political statement,” but  delayed the investigation into the offensive anti-LGBTQ+ banners and jeers that Hungarian fans displayed at the game. 

In the U.S., Colin Kaepernick’s decision to take a knee during the national anthem to protest against discrimination and police brutality cost him his career, as the San Francisco 49ers chose not to renew his contract in 2017 and other teams would not sign him.

What should we, as a society, make of these actions by our favorite sportsmen and sportswomen? It’s a quintessential question: Does politics belong in sports? We’ve been asking this question for a very long time (the 1936 Berlin Olympics come to mind). Some athletes, like Megan Rapinoe, think it does. And it is true that, without the popularity and attention of a stadium of cheering fans, these crucial messages may not get across. 

Serena Williams, one of the foremost tennis players of all time, became a United Nations Goodwill Ambassador in 2011 and has arduously fought against both sexism and racism. In an article for Fortune, she recognizes how due to her exceptional talent and hard work, she has been awarded opportunities she never would have had, which includes the opportunity to fight for her beliefs. The opportunity to integrate the fight for change across several fronts still provides society and athletes with an enormous advantage to push the envelope and lend attention to causes that need it.