2026 Sport and Discrimination Conference – Sport and Discrimination

9^th International Sport & Discrimination Conference

Dublin City University (DCU)

11-12 March 2026

Call for Papers

The 9^th international Sport and Discrimination Conference examines the intersectional nature of discrimination in sport. This event, taking place 11-12 March 2026, at Dublin City University (DCU), Ireland, invites presentations by academics, postgraduates, students, practitioners, and policy makers from a variety of backgrounds and specialisms. Although we welcome submissions exploring discrimination in sport more broadly, this year we particularly welcome submissions focusing on online discrimination in sport and ways to prevent, mitigate and challenge such abuse to better protect targets.

Discrimination cuts across traditional academic subjects and the ethos behind this conference is to bring together experts from different subject areas in an opportunity for knowledge exchange. We welcome presentations relating to all forms of discrimination across any sporting context. As in previous years of Sport and Discrimination events, submissions may approach the conference from a variety of perspectives, including:

empirical findings about the nature and extent of discrimination in sport;
research articulating the experiences of those who have suffered discrimination in sport and how such behaviours and processes may be combatted;
attempts to understand the intersectional nature of discrimination within sport;
contributions adding to the theoretical understanding of sport and discrimination;
policy recommendations and further suggestions for tackling and reducing discrimination in sport.

Proposals (in English, please), for 15-minute presentations, should include title, abstract (200 words), the name and institutional affiliation of the presenter(s) and a concise biography (100 words). The submission deadline is 5 December 2025. All submissions and enquiries should be sent to: SportDisc@leedsbeckett.ac.uk

The conference attendance fee is €100 for academics / practitioners in a full-time post, and €20 for Early Career Researchers (ECRs) (undertaking PhD), postgraduates and undergraduates. The registration page and link will be circulated following your notification of acceptance (if accepted) in mid-December 2025.

Unlike previous years, we will be running the conference across two days to accommodate a higher volume of papers (meaning fewer parallel sessions). The conference is expected to begin lunchtime 11 March and close 12 March in the evening. We are delighted to also announce that this year’s conference is being organised in combination with the International Association for Communication and Sport (IACS) Summit, a well-established sport media conference and network. The IACS Summit directly follows us, taking place 12-14 March 2026 at DCU. We will host a ‘conference crossover’ on the evening of 12 March to celebrate the close of the 2026 Sport & Discrimination Conference and mark the launch of the 2026 IACS Summit. This provides the perfect opportunity to grow both respective events and allow delegates to grow their networks. We encourage delegates to attend both conferences if possible and if so, there will be a 20% reduction on registration fees for both conferences. So, one trip, two conferences, more outputs, and more connections! If you would like to apply to IACS, please click here. Please note the IACS submission deadline is 15 October 2025 so apply ASAP if you would like to attend both events.

Key dates

September 2025:          Call for papers
05 December 2025:     Deadline for the submission of abstracts
15 December 2025:     Notification of acceptance & registration link to follow
27 February 2026:        Registration Deadline

11-12 March 2026: Sport and Discrimination Conference

For more information, please check out the S&D website.

Venue

St. Patricks Campus, Drumcondra Rd Upper, Drumcondra, Dublin, Ireland

Keynote Speaker

Professor Andrew Billings

Associate Dean for Faculty, College of Communication & Information Sciences

Ronald Reagan Chair of Broadcasting, Dept. of Journalism & Creative Media

Executive Director, Alabama Program in Sport Communication

Affiliate Faculty, Department of Race and Gender Studies

The University of Alabama

Organising Committee