The IF Forum 2025, organised by SportAccord, will be held from 27 to 29 October at the Olympic Museum in Lausanne. Under the theme “The New Global Reality in Sport: IFs in a world that refuses to stand still”, the event will bring together leaders from across the international sports ecosystem to address the challenges of today’s shifting landscape.

The president of the International Olympic Committee -IOC-, Kirsty Coventry, will open the Forum with a welcome address. Her election last June marked a historic milestone, as she became the first woman and the first African to lead the Olympic Movement.

Leadership in a constantly changing context

Over three days, the IF Forum will provide an exclusive platform for dialogue, bringing together representatives of international federations and other key stakeholders in world sport. The programme will explore how institutions can adapt to a rapidly changing environment without losing their identity.

Topics on the agenda include commercialisation, leadership fragmentation, governance sustainability, and the visibility of women’s sport. The goal is not to offer definitive answers but to open a space for collective reflection.

Geopolitics and economics at the heart of the debate

One of the keynote speakers will be Simon Chadwick, Professor of Sport and Geopolitics at Emlyon Business School, who will analyse how international tensions and economic dynamics are impacting global sport. “We live in a complex and sensitive world that requires strong leadership and management,” he said ahead of the event.

His intervention will highlight how sport intersects with geopolitical and economic realities, shaping competition calendars, host city selections, and sponsorships. It is an area where the credibility of institutions is more crucial than ever.

The IF Forum as a space for strategic reflection

The 2025 edition will reinforce the Forum’s role as an invitation-only gathering, firmly established as a reference platform for federations and sports leaders. In a context of uncertainty, the meeting aims to act as a guide to understanding change without losing institutional cohesion.

The full programme will be announced in the coming weeks, but Lausanne is once again set to become the central stage for examining the evolution of international sport.