Kosovo basketball plays for a sustainable sporting future

In February 2008, Kosovo declared independence from Serbia which was significant in its enduring trajectory towards sovereignty. Yet, ‘independence’ has been a complex process and the nation remains in pursuit of legitimacy from key global governing entities (e.g. United Nations and European Union). Simultaneously, the acquisition of international sport membership has been instrumental to the sustainability of the country’s sport sector and a mechanism for raising its profile and cause. Beyond the IOC and FIFA’s agency in this space, the plight of other national sporting federations is less well known. Contextualised against an understanding of how the region’s histories bear upon the development of Kosovo’s sport, we examine organisational possibilities for Federata e Basketbollit të Kosovës (FBK) and its members during the period and consider ways this adds to narratives about the country and its sporting past. Positioned within organisational sustainability theories, and drawing upon data from basketball sports workers, archival sources and sport federation resources, we present an interrogation of relationships between national development and individuals’ navigation of sport participation. Illustrating processes of resilience, survivability and thrivability, the research contributes to a critique of ways organisational in/stability affects sector development and individuals’ navigation of employment experiences and opportunities.