Stanis Elsborg, a Danish researcher, is a senior analyst and head of conferences at Play the Game, which aims to raise the ethical standards of sport while promoting democracy, transparency, and freedom of expression in world sport. In 2022, Elsborg was honored with the prestigious Gerlev Award, which is given “for an effort that has particularly developed the qualities of sport or of the views on sport’s cultural position and possibilities… and to support initiatives that dare dispute the established sports political order.” For more than a decade, Elsborg has delved into the ways in which authoritarian regimes utilize sports as a tool to further their foreign and domestic agendas. His latest publication includes an extensive dataset and mapping of the key players behind Saudi Arabia’s sports strategy, encompassing more than 300 Saudi sponsorships in sports.