Critical Sport Studies Tour : FIFA World Cup 26, Olympisms, and Societies

This May, Villa Albertine is featuring three leading French historians—Paul Dietschy (Université Marie & Louis Pasteur), Yvan Gastaut (Université Côte d’Azur), and Stéphane Mourlane (Aix-Marseille Université)—for a thought-provoking US-Canadian tour on Critical Sport Studies.

From May 8 to 16, they will explore the vibrant intersections of sport and society, with a special focus on the upcoming FIFA World Cup 2026 and North America’s legacy as an Olympic host. Their journey will take them to Salt Lake City, Seattle, and Vancouver, where they’ll engage with local communities, academics, and sports enthusiasts.

As experts in the history of soccer and the social impact of mega-events like Paris 2024, their insights promise to spark lively conversations about the past, present, and future of sports on both sides of the Atlantic.

Don’t miss this rare opportunity to engage with cutting-edge perspectives on sport, culture, and society — right as North America prepares to host the world.

Find the detailed schedule here:

• May 9 : Salt Lake City, University of Utah
  • Exploratory Tour of the University
• May 11: Seattle, University of Washington, School of Interdisciplinary Arts & Sciences
  • A panel conversation on the FIFA World Cup, 5 – 6:30PM. (check back soon for additional info)
• May 12: Seattle, University of Washington, Department of Urban Design and Planning
  • “Lessons on Megaevent Sustainability from France”, a talk on Paris urban resilience post Paris 2024, 5:30-7:00 PM, Gould Hall 332, UW campus.
• May 13 : Seattle, Town Hall
  • Meeting and conversation with Brianna Scurry, 6:30 – 8:30 PM. (check back soon for additional info)
• May 14-16: Vancouver

The team

Paul Dietschy

Paul Dietschy is Professor of Contemporary History at the Université Marie et Louis Pasteur and a member of the Centre Lucien Febvre in Besançon, France. His research focuses on the history of sport and football, as well as modern Italy. He currently leads the Franco-German ANR-DFG research project ARENES on stadiums and serves as editor-in-chief of the journal Football(s). History, Culture, Economics, Society. He is the author of numerous books and articles in French and Italian, including Histoire du football (2014, co-authored with Stefano Pivato) and Storia dello sport in Italia (2019). His work in English has appeared in the Journal of Global History (2013) and the European Review (2011), among other venues.

Football(s), Histoire, Culture, économie, société. Cover of the soon-to-be-published 8th edition.

Yvan Gastaut

Yvan Gastaut is Associate Professor at the Université Côte d’Azur in Nice, where he specializes in the history of immigration in France and the Mediterranean world, as well as the history of sport, with a particular focus on football. He is a member of the URMIS research laboratory (Unité de Recherche Migrations et Société). His scholarship examines migration through social, political, and cultural lenses, tracing the mechanisms of othering across colonial and postcolonial contexts and exploring how intercultural exchange generates both enrichment and resistance. In 2023–24, he was involved in organizing the major exhibition Olympism: A History of the World at the Palais de la Porte Dorée in anticipation of the Paris Olympics. In 2024, he co-edited, with Philippe Tétart and Didier Rey, a volume exploring how Black athletes were represented in the press before the Second World War.

Stéphane Mourlane

Stéphane Mourlane is Associate Professor in Contemporary History at Aix-Marseille University and a member of UMR 7303 TELEMMe. He serves as Deputy Director of the Maison méditerranéenne des sciences de l’homme (Aix-Marseille University–CNRS). His research spans the history of migration and the history of sport. Together with Yvan Gastaut, he co-directs the “Territory and Sports Heritage” programme (TEPAS). He was one of the academic curators of the landmark exhibition Olympism: A History of the World, held during the 2024 Paris Olympic and Paralympic Games. He sits on the editorial boards of Studi Emigrazione and Football(s). Histoire, culture, économie, société. With Paul Dietschy and Yvan Gastaut, he co-authored Histoire politique des Coupes du monde de football (2006). His recent editorial work includes Olympisme. Une histoire du monde. Des premiers Jeux olympiques d’Athènes 1896 aux Jeux olympiques et paralympiques de Paris 2024 (2024), Une histoire mondiale de l’olympisme, 1896–2024 (2023), and Atlas des migrations en Méditerranée de l’Antiquité à nos jours (2021).

Villa Albertine San Francisco would like to thank the partners that made this tour possible.