International Conference: Preserving and Promoting Europe’s Sporting Heritage

The conference is intended for researchers, educators, sport organisations and professionals, museum and cultural heritage professionals, curators, historians, students, digital practitioners, game-based learning professionals and everyone interested in sport and its cultural heritage.

My Sporting Heritage is an Erasmus+ Sport project exploring how Europe’s sporting heritage can be preserved, interpreted, shared and made accessible to different communities and generations. The project brings together expertise from museums, academia, cultural heritage, sport, digital culture and participatory practices.

The conference will bring together European and international perspectives through keynote presentations, examples of practice, panel discussions and a focus session on digitisation, educational gamification and game-based learning. The afternoon programme will include participatory workshops featuring educational tools developed within the project, while the My Sporting Heritage Virtual Gallery and interactive sport installations will be available throughout the conference.

Participation is free, but registration is required. Participants can join the conference onsite in Zagreb or online. The working language is English. The full conference programme and registration link are available below.

My Sporting Heritage: Preserving and Promoting Europe’s Sporting Heritage

12 September 2026
Zagreb (Hybrid event) 10:00 – 15:45

Registration is open for both onsite and online participants until Thursday, 10 September 2026: https://forms.gle/F61TLfmHQxQ3aGCr6

Online link: online participants will get the link after their submission and confirmation of attendance

Conference Programme

9:30 - Registration, coffee and biscuits

10:00 – 10:05 - Welcome - Hugo Tosello, Sport & Citizens (Sport & Citoyenneté), France

Opening
Format: Plenary

10:05 - 10:10

• Welcome by the host organisation - Markita Franulić, Director of Technical Museum Nikola Tesla

10:10 - 10:15

• Presentation of the My Sporting Heritage project (ERASMUS-SPORT-2023) Representative from the My Sporting Heritage project consortium, Hugo Tosello, Sport & Citizens (Sport & Citoyenneté), France

10:15 - 10:32

Keynote Speaker:

• Niek Pas, University of Amsterdam, Netherlands

10:32 - 10:40

Local Example of Practice:

• Danira Nakić, Director of Croatian Sports Museum, Croatia

A presentation of the newly opened Croatian Sports Museum, highlighting its role in preserving and presenting Croatia’s sporting heritage to the public.

10:40 – 11:30 Discussion Panel

Europe’s Sporting Heritage: Between Memory, Identity and Education

Format: moderated panel discussion

The panel brings together perspectives from academia, research, museums, traditional sports and cultural heritage practice to explore how sporting heritage is remembered, interpreted and shared across Europe. The discussion will address the role of sport in shaping collective memory and identity, as well as the challenges and opportunities of preserving and communicating this heritage in contemporary and digital contexts.

Discussion focus:

• What is “sporting heritage” in Europe today?

• Why does it matter for identity and citizenship?

• How can it be preserved and made accessible digitally?

Speakers:

• Marie Grasse, Director-General of the Musée National du Sport, France

• Niek Pas, University of Amsterdam, Netherlands

• Milivoj Pacenti, Croatian Traditional Games and Sports Association (HSTIS), Croatia

• Martina Fileš, Museum of ZGSports Stories, Croatia

• Marko Zubak, Croatian Institute of History, Croatia

11:30-11:40 Q&A

11:40 – 11:50 Coffee Break & Networking

A break for introductions and conversation with some coffee, tea, biscuits or cycling on interactive sport installations.

11:50–12:45 – Focus Session – Educational Gamification

Digitization and Gamification for Learning about Sport Heritage

Module 1:
11:50–12:05:

• Deborah Hustić, Radiona.org - Zagreb Makerspace, Croatia - Presentation of My Sporting Heritage Games and Pedagogical Tools: The Rift - Escape Card Game and The Sport Heritage Trails - Geocache Game

The session presents two educational games developed within the My Sporting Heritage project and explores how game mechanics can support engagement, retention of historical knowledge and intercultural understanding through playful approaches to sporting heritage.

12:05–12:45

Module 2: Roundtable on gamifying sports heritage

The roundtable brings together perspectives from sport, cultural heritage and digital practice to discuss the educational potential of gamification. It will explore how game-based and digital approaches can make sporting heritage more accessible, participatory and engaging for different audiences.

• What gamification can bring to education?

• Why does gamification work for cultural heritage learning?

• How digital tools can be used in learning about sport heritage?

Speakers:

• Ana Popovčić, Croatian Olympic Committee, Croatia

• Pier Giacomo Sola, Michael Culture Association, Belgium

• Deborah Hustić, Radiona.org - Zagreb Makerspace, Croatia

• additional speakers to be announced

Includes short audience Q&A.

12:45-13:00

Global Example of Practice

• Marcelo Contineli: Football Museum (pt: Museu do Futebol), Brazil (online)

An online presentation of the Football Museum in São Paulo, offering a global perspective on how football heritage can be preserved, interpreted and shared through museum practice, storytelling and public engagement.

13:00 – 14:00 Lunch Break & Demo Area

• Networking lunch + workshops registration

14:00 – 15:00 Participatory Workshops (Parallel Sessions)

Workshops: Serious Games & Educational Toolkit Lab

Testing Learning through Play

Workshop 1 - TREASURE HUNT GAME

Engaging Youth with European Sporting Heritage

Treasure Hunting Game on Sport Heritage
(with artefacts from Croatian Sports Museum and Technical Museum Nikola Tesla)

Participants will explore sporting heritage through a treasure hunt game based on selected artefacts from the Croatian Sports Museum and Technical Museum Nikola Tesla. Working individually or in groups, they will engage with heritage content through game-based challenges and provide short feedback on usability, engagement and educational value.

Workshop leaders: Pier Giacomo Sola & Maria Teresa Natale, Michael Culture Association, Belgium

Workshop 2 – Geocaching Game Lab

Exploring European Sporting Heritage through Movement and Discovery

The Sport Heritage Trails is a physical-digital geocaching game that invites participants to discover stories, places and themes connected to Europe’s sporting heritage through movement and exploration. Using location-based clues, QR codes and collaborative tasks, players follow a trail, uncover heritage content and connect physical activity with storytelling, discovery and learning.

Game developed by: Deborah Hustić and Damir Prizmić, Radiona.org – Zagreb Makerspace; Nicolas Mangiapan, Musée National du Sport, Nice
Workshop leaders: Deborah Hustić and Damir Prizmić

Workshop 3 – Escape Card Game Lab

Saving Europe’s Sporting Heritage from the Time Rift – Escape Card Game

The Rift is a narrative escape card game in which teams solve a series of puzzles and challenges to prevent the disappearance of Europe’s sporting heritage. Through collaborative gameplay, participants uncover stories and knowledge related to sport heritage while working together against the clock.

Game developed by: Deborah Hustić and Damir Prizmić, Radiona.org – Zagreb Makerspace; Laurene Rolland-Bertrand, Musée National du Sport, Nice
Workshop leaders: Deborah Hustić and Damir Prizmić

15:00 – 15:15 Closing Session

• From Project to Legacy, Hugo Tosello, Sport & Citizens (Sport & Citoyenneté), France

A short closing reflection on the outcomes of the My Sporting Heritage project, its future use and potential legacy, followed by audience feedback and final remarks.

15:15 - 15:45

Informal mingling with coffee, tea and biscuits, offering time for further conversation, networking and exchange. Cheers until next time!

Continuous activities during the conference

• EXHIBITION: My Sporting Heritage Virtual Gallery Preview - Digital Exhibition

A preview of the My Sporting Heritage Virtual Gallery, presenting selected stories, collections and digital materials developed within the project and exploring new ways of accessing and experiencing Europe’s sporting heritage online.

Developed and coordinated by: Pier Giacomo Sola & Maria Teresa Natale, Michael Culture Association, Belgium/Italy
Content contributions: My Sporting Heritage project partners and collaborators

• Interactive Sport Installations

A selection of interactive sport installations presented by the Museum of ZGSports Stories, combining sporting heritage, playful interaction and electronic design. The installations include electronic components and technical development by Goran Mahovlić (Radiona.org, Intergalaktik Ltd.)
Curated by Martina Fileš, Museum of ZGSports Stories.

Impressum

Conference concept: Hugo Tosello (Sport & Citoyenneté), Deborah Hustić (Radiona), Niek Pas (University of Amsterdam), Pier Giacomo Sola, Maria Teresa Natale (Michael Culture), Laurene Rolland-Bertrand (Musée National du Sport).
In charge for the final event Zagreb conference WP package of the project: Radiona.org (HR) & Sport & Citoyenneté (FR)

Coordination of the event: Deborah Hustić (lead), Maja Zednik Brleković (assistant), Hugo Tosello (lead)
Technical production: Goran Mahovlić, Damir Prizmić, Fran Masnjak
Streaming & video production: David Dubrović (Antares.hr)
Catering: Ana Stuparić (Green Witch)
Technical Museum Nikola Tesla: Marijo Zrna
Photo for the cover: From the collection of the Croatian Sports Museum, Exhibition Le's Go To PE Class

T H A N K Y O U:
Markita Franulić, Marijo Zrna, Technical Museum Nikola Tesla staff, Danira Nakić, Vesna Bradamante, Hanna Supina, Marijan Sutlović, Marcelo Contineli, Martina Fileš, Ana Popovčić, Marko Zubak, Marin Šarec.

My Sporting Heritage is an Erasmus+ Sport project coordinated by the Musée National du Sport, France. The project brings together expertise in research, sporting heritage, cultural routes, digital pedagogy and participatory practices through its partners: University of Amsterdam, European Cultural Route of Sport Association, Think Tank Sport & Citoyenneté, Michael Culture Association and Radiona.org – Zagreb Makerspace.

Organizers: My Sporting Heritage Consortium with Think Tank Sport & Citoyenneté & Radiona.org

Local partners: Technical Museum Nikola Tesla, Croatian Sports Museum, Museum of ZGSports Stories

Program supported by: Erasmus+ Sport

More details about the project: https://my-sporting-heritage.eu/