Every sport has a different governing body that can define the way that the sport operates through its affiliated clubs and societies. This is because sports have different levels of difficulty and skill, so they can try to organize the people playing their sport by ability and by age. There are several different types of sport governing bodies.
International sports federations International sports federations are non-governmental non-profit organizations for a given sport (or a group of similar sport disciplines, such as
aquatics or
skiing) and administers its sport at the highest level. These federations work to create a common set of rules, promote their sport, and organize international competitions. International sports federations represent their sport at the Olympic level where applicable. About 30 international sport federations are located in
Switzerland, with about 20 or so in the
Lausanne area, where the International Olympic Committee is located. Also, national governing bodies can be a
supraorganization representing a range of unrelated organizations operating in a particular sport, as evident in the example of the
Northern Ireland Federation of Sub-Aqua Clubs.
Event organizers Multi-sport event organizers are responsible for the organization of an event that includes more than one sport. The best-known example is the
International Olympic Committee (IOC), the organizer of the modern Olympic Games. General sports organizations are responsible for sports-related topics, usually for a certain group, such as the
Catholic or
Jewish sports groups. General sports organizations and multi-sport events also exist for other groups such as the
Invictus Games for military veterans.
Professional leagues Professional sports leagues are usually the highest level of play in sport, specifically if they consist of the best players around the world in a certain sport. Because of this, they usually work with national or international federations, but there is usually a separation between the different federations. Most North American professional leagues usually do not have amateur divisions, as the
amateur divisions are mostly run in separate leagues. Also, most professional leagues are related to other leagues, as players usually attempt to play in the league with the highest level of play. Because of this,
promotion and relegation can occur; or, in league systems without promotion and relegation, clubs in professional leagues can have a team in the
minor leagues. This enables them to shuffle players who are not doing well to the minor leagues, which will inspire them to contribute more to the team by playing better. == Criticisms ==