Sports Envoys and U.S. Women’s National Team member, Alex Morgan leads soccer drills in Tanzania. 2017.
About
Sports Envoys are American current and former athletes, coaches, and sports administrators who travel overseas to lead programs that are developed by U.S. Embassies and Consulates in collaboration with the Sports Diplomacy Division of the U.S. Department of State’s Bureau of Educational and Cultural Affairs (ECA).
The Sports Envoys lead sports clinics for young people and their coaches, participate in community outreach activities, and engage audiences in a dialogue to develop leadership skills, encourage academic success, and empower girls, people with disabilities and marginalized communities to achieve their potential.
Sports Envoys typically travel to a single country for five to seven days of programming including travel time but programs can also be designed around the pre-planned travel of athletes or coaches to participate in international competitions or while on other travel.
““Of all the things I do in sport, I have to say this is my absolute most rewarding, fun, and interesting opportunity, that of a Sports Envoy.””
Recent Sports Envoys
Upcoming Sports Envoys
Envoys: Lisa Berg, Sarah Huffman & Johnny Collins
May 19-23, 2019: Kuwait
From May 19- 23, 2019, the U.S. Department of State will sponsor three Sports Envoys as they travel as part of the Sports Envoy program.
The Envoys, all working in various capacities in the sports world, will be travelling to Kuwait to connect with youth and coaches along the on behalf of the United States; conducting clinics, giving talks, and inviting people of all ages to join them in events and activities.
With a schedule that will be stacked with impact-heavy programming, the group will focus efforts on under-represented communities with a message of using sports to build community.
Envoys: Harlem Globetrotters
April 26- May 6, 2019: Uzbekistan
From April 26- May 6, 2019, the U.S. Department of State will sponsor two Sports Envoys as they traveled as part of the Sports Envoy program.
Harlem Globetrotter stars TNT Lister and Zeus McClurkin represented the Globetrotters on a recent eight-day goodwill trip around the central Asian country of Uzbekistan as part of the U.S. State Department’s Sports Envoy program.
The Globetrotter duo presented basketball clinics, as well as their anti-bullying school program (T.E.A.M. Up) in cities across Uzbekistan, including the capital city of Tashkent, as well as Chust, Namangan, Andijan, Margilan and Kuva (Uzbekistan is roughly equivalent in area to the state of California).
Recent Sports Envoy Program Map
See where Sports Envoys have travelled since 2017.
Get Involved
The Department of State partners with professional sports leagues, the U.S. Olympic Committee, U.S. Soccer and other U.S. national governing bodies of sport to recruit and select Sports Envoys. We also welcome the direct interest of accomplished athletes, coaches, and administrators who want to make a positive difference in countries around the world.
If you are interested in becoming a Sports Envoy, please message us below to find out more!
