The edited volume explains why sport mega events can be discussed from the viewpoint of politics and power, and what this discussion can add to the existing scholarship on political regimes, international norms, national identities, and cultural narratives. The book collects case studies written by insiders from different countries of post-Soviet Eurasia that have recently hosted- or intend to host in the future -sporting events of a global scale. Contributing authors discuss cultural, political, and economic strategies of host governments, examining them from the vantage point of an increasing shift of the global sport industry to non-Western countries. Mega-events often draw domestic lines of cultural and social exclusion within host's polities. It is these ruptures and gaps this volume explores, contributing to a better understanding of the intricate interconnections between global institutions and national identities.

Andrey Makarychev is Professor of Politics and Governance at the University of Tartu, Estonia. He has published on a variety of topics related to Russian foreign policy, including a co-edited volume titled Russia's Changing Economic and Political Regimes (2013), Russia and the EU in a Multipolar World (2014), and a contributing chapter in Russia's Foreign Policy (2015). He has published research articles in major peer-reviewed international journals such as Problems of Post-Communism, Journal of International Relations and Development, Europe-Asia Studies, Journal of Eurasian Studies, Demokratizatsiya, and European Urban and Regional Studies. Alexandra Yatsyk is Carnegie Research Scholar at the George Washington University's Institute for European, Russian and Eurasian Studies, USA and Head of the Center for Cultural Studies of Post-Socialism at the Kazan Federal University, Russia. She is a co-editor of a special issue of Sport in Society (2015) and the author of several book chapters and articles, including Russia's Foreign Policy (2015), European Urban and Regional Studies, Problems of Post- Communism, International Spectator, and Digital Icons.