Imperial deep play: Reading sport and visions of the five empires of the New World, 1919-1941

In the period between the First World War and the Second World War the US became the globes leading power and sought to extend its cultural influence, particularly around the Pacific Rim and in Latin America. Following the lead of Great Britain, the US employed sport as a tool of empire. In the process an emerging American empire came into sporting conflicts with the remnants of older Iberian and Chinese empires, the outposts of a still significant British Empire, and the rising power of a new Japanese empire. In confronting imperial competitors American conceptions of the cultural power of sport shaped a series of fascinating interchanges. These exchanges were far more than mere amusements. In fact, the deep play of these empires reveals the contours of the international cultural and political transitions that reshaped global relations in an era of rapid transitions. In the process, sport revealed imperial and national patterns and trends.