Imad Razik omer- college of political science and law at the University of Anbar
With the beginning of 2023 iraq witnessed launching the Arabian gulf cup 25 in Basra, highlighting the importance of the event due the long interruption holding of such events, As result of the international embargo against Iraq since 1990, sports events such as gulf cup play’s major role in international politics, state has begun to use them as part of an increasing shift towards (soft power) at expense of (hard power), soft power according to (Joseph Nye) indicates it is a mixture between attractiveness and temptations, and being tempted by unforced way, instead it relies on sport, culture and art, history and monuments, These means highlight the importance of being relatively safe, a guaranteed way of improving the country’s image, as well as restoring credibility, prestige and economic competitiveness and attracting investment, and Iraq as a result of the shifts from wars, blockades, occupation, sectarian events and the trauma of terrorism in ISIS, all of which have consolidated the image of fragmentation and instability, and have become the term The phenomena similar to the case of Iraq are termed as part of the stereotype that has been stuck in public opinion, Both official and popular, because of that, soft power considered a reliable major resource for Iraq, and Working towards making an integrated strategy adopted by the Ministry of Foreign Affairs based on public diplomacy, when the Ministry of Youth and Sport, the Iraqi Football Federation and the local government in Basra put so much effort and time to use this tool by hosting this tournament, and assures the parties in the Gulf Union that the country is able to make this session a success’s Gulf Cup (25), At all levels, in terms of the number of audiences that exceeded 65 thousand spectators or the luxury of the presentation when it reflected images of Iraq’s history and some well-known myths.
