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List of international sports federations
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This is a list of international sports federations, each of which serves as a non-governmental governing body for a given sport and administers its sport at a world level, most often crafting rules, promoting the sport to prospective spectators and fans, developing prospective players, and organizing world or continental championships. Some international sports federations, such as World Aquatics and the International Skating Union, may oversee multiple activities referred to in common parlance as separate sports: World Aquatics, for example governs swimming, diving, synchronised swimming, and water polo as separate "disciplines" within the single "sport" of Aquatics.
International sports federations form an integral part of the Olympic and Paralympic movements. Each Olympic sport is represented by its respective international sports federation, which in turn helps administer the events in its respective sport during the Games. For a sport to become an Olympic sport, its international sports federation must be recognized by the International Olympic Committee.[1]
Likewise, an international sports federation must be recognized by the International Paralympic Committee for its sport to become a paralympic sport, though in the latter case, several Paralympic Sports are governed by a dedicated committee of the International Paralympic Committee itself, under the World Para branding, for example track and field athletics for disabled athletes is governed by the IPC itself, under the name "World Para Athletics". Other Paralympic sports are governed within the structure of the able-bodied equivalent: for example, the UCI governs both able-bodied and paralympic cycling.
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Federations recognized by the International Olympic Committee (IOC)
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Association of Summer Olympic International Federations (ASOIF)
International federations may apply to become a full member if they govern a core Summer Olympic sport or govern a sport which featured in the three most recent Summer Olympics. They may apply to become an associate member if they govern a sport included on the programme for future editions of the Summer Olympic Games or govern a sport which has featured in any five editions of the Summer Olympic Games since 1988.[2]
As of March 2025, the Association of Summer Olympic International Federations (ASOIF) has 30 full member and five associate member international federations.[3][4]Full members
Associate members
Winter Olympic Federations (WOF)
Sport federations that govern a sport in the program of the Winter Olympics are members of the WOF.[6] As of March 2025, it has seven full members and one associate member.
Full members
Associate members
Association of IOC Recognised International Sports Federations (ARISF)
The ARISF's members are international sports federations recognised by the IOC whose sport is currently not competed in either the Summer or Winter Olympics. As of March 2025, 40 governing bodies are members of the ARISF:[9][10]
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Federations recognized by SportAccord or GAISF
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Federations whose sports are either included in the Olympic Games (ASOIF, AIOWF) or recognized by the IOC (ARISF) are also stakeholders of SportAccord,[12] after the dissolution of the Global Association of International Sports Federations (GAISF) in 2023. Other stakeholders of SportAccord (non-IOC recognized) compose the Alliance of Independent Recognized Members of Sport (AIMS).[13]
Alliance of Independent Recognized Members of Sport (AIMS)
AIMS is a stakeholder of SportAccord that represents sports federations that were not yet recognized by the International Olympic Committee (IOC). As of March 2025, AIMS has 21 full member federations.[14]
Observers of GAISF
Before the dissolution of GAISF in 2023, the GAISF Observer Status could be requested by the applicants for GAISF membership interested to obtain support and guidance in their path to fulfil the GAISF membership criteria. At the time of dissolution, it had 11 observers:[16]
Associate members of GAISF
Before the dissolution of GAISF in 2023, other than full members (composing ASOIF, AIOWF, ARISF and AIMS), there have been Associate members of GAISF.[17] After the dissolution of GAISF, the proposal has been for its former associate members to be granted observer status at the SportAccord General Assembly.[18] The follwoing were associate members:[citation needed]
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Federations recognized by the International Paralympic Committee (IPC)
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There are 17 international federations recognized by the IPC, while the IPC itself serves as the international federation for six sports. IPC recognises also 3 International Organisations of Sports for the Disabled. And there are another 14 federations which are recognised by the IPC but are not eligible to be IPC members.[19]
Sports directly governed by IPC
On 30 November 2016, the IPC adopted the "World Para" brand for all 10 of the sports that it directly governed at that time.[20] At the 2021 IPC General Assembly, IPC members provided a strong mandate for the IPC to cease acting as the international federation for 10 sports by the end of 2026.[21] Para-alpine skiing, para cross country skiing and para snowboard were transferred to FIS,[21] and Para biathlon was transferred to IBU to be overseen by a joint steering committee involving IBU and FIS.[22]} Currently IPC acts as the international federation for six sports:[23]
International Federations
International Federations are independent sport federations recognised by the IPC as the sole representative of a Paralympic sport. As of 2024, the IPC recognises 17 International Federations representing 19 parasports:[19]
International Organisations of Sports for the Disabled
International Organisations of Sports for the Disabled (IOSDs) are independent organisations recognised by the IPC as the sole representatives of a specific impairment group. The IPC currently recognises 3 IOSDs:[19]
Following two years of talks, and relevant decisions by both their General Assemblies, on 1 January 2023, the Cerebral Palsy International Sports and Recreation Association (CPISRA) and the International Wheelchair and Amputee Sports Federation (IWAS) were merged to form World Abilitysport.[34]
IPC-recognised international sports federations (not eligible for membership)
The IPC recognises a number of international sports federations which are not eligible to be IPC members, but contribute to the development of sport opportunities for athletes associated with the Paralympic Movement and have organisational goals that are compatible with the Vision and Mission of the IPC. The following 14 are IPC-recognised international sport federations:[19]
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Non-SportAccord and non-GAISF federations that are TAFISA members
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The international federations listed below, for the time being, are not members of Global Association of International Sports Federations (GAISF) or SportAccord, but are among the international members of The Association for International Sport for All (TAFISA).[35]
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Other federations
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The international federations listed below are not related to either of GAISF, SportAccord or The Association for International Sport for All (TAFISA):
Defunct federations
Miscellaneous
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Sports governed by national associations
Certain sports are currently not governed by international federations, but rather by national associations.
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See also
Notes
- Also a member of International World Games Association (IWGA).
- Also a member of Association of IOC Recognised International Sports Federations (ARISF).
- includes aerobatics, air racing, ballooning, gliding, hang gliding, and parachuting/skydiving
- including flag football
- Also an associate member of Association of Summer Olympic International Federations (ASOIF).
- includes carom billiards, pool, and snooker
- Provisional member, pending ratification by ARISF general assembly.[11]
- Also a member of Alliance of Independent Recognized Members of Sport (AIMS).
- Also an associate member of Winter Olympic Federations (WOF).
- Also a provisional member of Association of IOC Recognised International Sports Federations (ARISF), pending ratification by ARISF general assembly.
- It is a supporter member of TAFISA.[36]
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References
Further reading
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