The language of sport is unique and inclusive. It has an ability to integrate and unify cultures, races, and identities. After the 1992 Rugby World Cup, which united both white and black South Africans for the first time, Nelson Mandela said, “Sport has the power to change the world. It has the power to inspire. It has the power to unite people in a way that little else does. It speaks to youth in a language they understand. Sport can create hope where once there was only despair.”
In an attempt to extend the inclusive power of sport, Adidas and Arizona State University joined forces to create the Adidas and Arizona State University Global Sports Alliance. The alliance aims to connect students, professors, researchers, and engineers to integrate athletics, academics, and discovery, and further efforts towards diversity, race, sustainability and human potential.
For race relations, the Global Sports Alliance will research fair representation within coaching ranks and team ownership, how fans act towards athletes, biased officiating, and how racial background affects participation.
In an effort to increase health and human potential in sports, the partners plan to implement programs regarding nutrition, mindset, movement, recovery, and product.
ASU has a long history of deep commitment to sustainability. The Julie Ann Wrigley Global Institute for Sustainability was the world’s first sustainability school. The school now holds over 400 sustainability scientists studying engineering, business, law, biodesign, journalism, english, history and more.
“As the world approaches a population of 10 billion, we will have to find ways to be sustainable when it comes to food production and allocation, economic productivity and environmental matters,” said an ASU spokesman. “All factor into ASU’s comprehensive view of sustainability. We can’t tackle it alone, but we believe we can demonstrate a model for how it might be tackled if we all work together.”
With Adidas as a partner, ASU’s sustainability efforts will remain a key theme in the Global Sports Alliance.
ASU and Adidas first met to negotiate an apparel deal a few years ago. At the meeting, leaders discovered that by combining the academic resources at ASU with Adidas’ global outreach, they could accomplish much more than putting a uniform on an athlete’s body. They could make the world a better place. Leaders were able to discuss and develop their shared goals to construct a powerful and progressive alliance with vast potential.
A specific element of the Global Sports Alliance will be the Global Sports Institute (GSI), which will break down complex sports research and translate it to a broader audience through reports, infographics, podcasts, and social media. GSI also plans to organize public events and engage important sports figures.
Adidas and ASU named Kenneth Shropshire, an international expert at the intersection of sports, business, law and society, as the CEO of GSI. Additionally, Adidas created a position for him as ASU’s Distinguished Professor in Global Sports.
The development of GSI embodies ASU’s attempts towards innovation. For the second straight year, ASU has been ranked by U.S. News and World Report as the No. 1 most innovative university in the country.
“Because of our focus on innovation – on changing the very nature of what it means to be a public research university in this country – big corporations are seeking us out,” said ASU spokesman. “From the Starbucks College Achievement Plan, to our partnership on a new medical school and the future of medical education with the internationally acclaimed Mayo Clinic, to this Adidas deal, ASU believes that working with leaders in their respective fields offers opportunities for our students, faculty and staff to be more productive to solve the world’s most pressing issues.”
