List of international sports federations
Template:Short description Template:See also Template:Use dmy dates Template:Olympic Games sidebar
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.<ref>{{#invoke:citation/CS1|citation |CitationClass=web }}</ref>
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.
Federations recognized by the International Olympic Committee (IOC)
Association of Summer Olympic International Federations (ASOIF)
Full members
Associate members
Winter Olympic Federations (WOF)
Full members
Associate members
Association of IOC Recognised International Sports Federations (ARISF)
Federations recognized by SportAccord or GAISF
Federations whose sports are either included in the Olympic Games (ASOIF, AIOWF) or recognized by the IOC (ARISF) are also stakeholders of SportAccord,<ref>{{#invoke:citation/CS1|citation |CitationClass=web }}</ref> 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).<ref>{{#invoke:citation/CS1|citation |CitationClass=web }}</ref>
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 September 2025, AIMS has 20 full member federations.<ref>{{#invoke:citation/CS1|citation |CitationClass=web }}</ref>
Associate Members
As of September 2025, AIMS has 9 associate members.<ref>{{#invoke:citation/CS1|citation |CitationClass=web }}</ref>
| Sport | International federation | Official website | Notes |
|---|---|---|---|
| American football | International Federation of American Football (IFAF) | Template:Url | Now in ARISF |
| Cheerleading | International Cheer Union (ICU) | Template:Url | Now in ARISF |
| Flying disc sports | World Flying Disc Federation (WFDF) | Template:Url | Now in ARISF |
| Ice stock sport | International Federation Icestocksport (IFI) | Template:Url | Now in ARISF |
| Kickboxing | World Association of Kickboxing Organizations (WAKO) | Template:Url | Now in ARISF |
| Lacrosse | World Lacrosse (WL) | Template:Url | Now in ARISF |
| Muay Thai | International Federation of Muaythai Associations (IFMA) | Template:Url | Now in ARISF |
| Sambo | Fédération Internationale de Sambo (FIAS) | Template:Url | Now in ARISF |
| Ski mountaineering | International Ski Mountaineering Federation (ISMF) | Template:Url | Now in ARISF |
Observers of GAISF
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.<ref>{{#invoke:citation/CS1|citation |CitationClass=web }}</ref> After the dissolution of GAISF, the proposal has been for its former associate members to be granted observer status at the SportAccord General Assembly.<ref>{{#invoke:citation/CS1|citation |CitationClass=web }}</ref> The following were associate members:Template:Citation needed
Federations recognized by the International Paralympic Committee (IPC)
There are 18 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 15 federations which are recognised by the IPC but are not eligible to be IPC members.<ref name=":2">{{#invoke:citation/CS1|citation |CitationClass=web }}</ref>
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.<ref name="World Para">Template:Cite press release</ref> 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.<ref name=":0" /> Para-alpine skiing, para cross country skiing and para snowboard were transferred to FIS,<ref name=":0">{{#invoke:citation/CS1|citation |CitationClass=web }}</ref> and Para biathlon was transferred to IBU to be overseen by a joint steering committee involving IBU and FIS.<ref name=":1">{{#invoke:citation/CS1|citation |CitationClass=web }}</ref>} Currently IPC acts as the international federation for six sports:<ref>{{#invoke:citation/CS1|citation |CitationClass=web }}</ref>
| Sport | IPC sport committee name |
|---|---|
| Para athletics | World Para Athletics |
| Para dance sport | World Para Dance Sport |
| Para ice hockey | World Para Ice Hockey |
| Para powerlifting | World Para Powerlifting |
| Shooting para sport | World Shooting Para Sport |
| Para swimming | World Para Swimming |
International Federations
International Federations are independent sport federations recognised by the IPC as the sole representative of a Paralympic sport. As of August 2025, the IPC recognises 18 International Federations representing 20 parasports:<ref name=":2"/>
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:<ref name=":2" />
| Sport | Federation | |||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Wheelchair fencing,<ref>{{#invoke:citation/CS1|citation | CitationClass=web
}}</ref> powerchair hockey,<ref>{{#invoke:citation/CS1|citation |
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}}</ref> frame running,<ref>{{#invoke:citation/CS1|citation |
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}}</ref> wheelchair slalom,<ref>{{#invoke:citation/CS1|citation |
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}}</ref> frame football<ref>{{#invoke:citation/CS1|citation |
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}}</ref> |
World Abilitysport |
| Blind football,<ref>{{#invoke:citation/CS1|citation | CitationClass=web
}}</ref> goalball, para judo<ref>{{#invoke:citation/CS1|citation |
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}}</ref> |
International Blind Sports Federation (IBSA) | |||
| For athletes with an intellectual disability | International Virtus Sports Federation<ref>{{#invoke:citation/CS1|citation | CitationClass=web
}}</ref> |
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.<ref>{{#invoke:citation/CS1|citation |CitationClass=web }}</ref>
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 13 are IPC-recognised international sport federations:<ref name=":2" />
Non-SportAccord and non-GAISF federations that are TAFISA members
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).<ref name=":4">{{#invoke:citation/CS1|citation |CitationClass=web }}</ref>
Other federations
{{#invoke:Hatnote|hatnote}}{{#ifeq:||}} The international federations listed below are not related to either of GAISF, SportAccord or The Association for International Sport for All (TAFISA):
Defunct federations
| Sport | Federation |
|---|---|
| Bodyboarding | International Bodyboarding Association (IBA) |
| Rope Skipping | International Rope Skipping Federation (IRSF), World Jump Rope Federation (WJRF) (merged and formed IJRU) |
Miscellaneous
- International Game Fish Association (IGFA)
- International Gay Bowling Organization (IGBO)
- International Federation of Corporate Football (FIFCO)
Sports governed by national associations
Certain sports are currently not governed by international federations, but rather by national associations.
| Sport | Federation |
|---|---|
| American handball | United States Handball Association (USHA) |
| Canadian five-pin bowling | Canadian 5 Pin Bowlers Association (C5PBA) |
| Gaelic football, Gaelic handball and hurling | Gaelic Athletic Association (GAA) |
| Greyhound racing | American Greyhound Track Operators Association (AGTOA), Greyhound Board of Great Britain (GBGB) |
| Horseshoes | National Horseshoe Pitchers Association of America (NHPA) |
| Paddleball | National Paddleball Association (NPA) |
| Pesäpallo (Finnish baseball) | Suomen Pesäpalloliitto Ry (Finnish Pesäpallo Association) |
| Pigeon racing | Royal Pigeon Racing Association (RPRA) |
| Rodeo | Professional Rodeo Cowboys Association (PRCA) |
| Rounders | Rounders England (formerly National Rounders Association (NRA)), Gaelic Athletic Association (GAA) |
| Rugby fives | Rugby Fives Association (RFA) |
| Shinty | Camanachd Association |
See also
- Association of International Olympic Winter Sports Federations (AIOWF)
- Association of IOC Recognised International Sports Federations (ARISF)
- Association of Summer Olympic International Federations (ASOIF)
- International Olympic Committee (IOC)
- International Paralympic Committee (IPC)
- Organisation of Sports Federations of Oceania
Notes
References
Further reading
- Cornelius, Steve; Cornelius, Danie. The Legal Status of International Sports Federations 2014 (1) Global Sports Law and Taxation Reports 6.
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