This book offers an accessible overview of the role sport has played, plays or ought to play in international relations and diplomacy. As this book demonstrates, sports diplomacy is a new term which describes an old, under-studied practice: the use of sport to generally bring strangers closer together, at its very simplest. More specifically, sport diplomacy can be defined as the conscious, strategic use of sportspeople and sporting events by state and non-state actors to engage, inform and create a favourable image among foreign publics and organisations, to shape their perceptions in a way that is (more) conducive to the sending group's goals. In order to better understand the many occasions where sport and diplomacy overlap, this book presents four new theoretical categories of sports diplomacy (traditional, sports diplomacy, international-sport-as-diplomacy, and sports anti-diplomacy). These make the young but dynamic field of study clearer for students, scholars and practitioners interested in sport, diplomacy and international relations. As a result, the landscape of sports diplomacy becomes clearer, as do the pitfalls and limitations of using sport as a tool for overcoming and mediating separation between people, non-state actors and states. The book has three other aims. First, and via an extensive literature and policy review, it serves as the first port of call for anyone with an interest in the role sport has played, plays or ought to play in international relations and diplomacy. As such, second, and due to the interdisciplinary nature of its two main topics, it aims to increase collaboration between academics, practitioners and policy makers from both the sport and diplomacy realms. Third, and finally, through its lively and accessible narrative style, it hopes to encourage and inspire a broad readership which, in turn, will hopefully produce more positive applications of sports diplomacy. This book will be of much interest to students of diplomacy, foreign policy, sports studies, and International Relations in general.