‘Why doesn’t Pakistan have a minister of sports?’ is a question that came to my mind when I read the changes that occurred to Pakistan’s constitution after the 18th amendment.
The powers of the ‘Ministry of Sports’ were transferred to ‘Pakistan Sports Board’ at the federal level, and over course of time, it had to be transitioned to the provinces within the country.
Pakistan Sports Board was established, under the Ministry of Education, in 1962 as a corporate body for the purpose of promoting and developing uniform standards of competition for sports in the country.
The standard needed to be comparable to the standards prevailing internationally; PSB had to regulate and control sports in Pakistan on a national basis.
In July 1977, the administrative control of Pakistan Sports Board was transferred to the Ministry of Culture, Sports and Tourism (due to the ministry’s creation).
After the devolution of the Ministry in June 2011, the administrative control of the Pakistan Sports Board was transferred to the Ministry of Inter Provincial Coordination.
In 2024, the Board is headquartered at the Pakistan Sports Complex, Islamabad.
PSB is the supreme body of sports that monitors the activities of National Sports Federations throughout Pakistan. It ensures proper utilization of annual and special grants.
The annual grants are released to the National Federations to meet their day to day expenses whereas special grants are meant for participation and holding of international sports events.
At present, 40 National Sports Federations are affiliated with the Board. Each Federation is responsible for promotion and development of its respective game/sport.
Sports facilities such as Jinnah Stadium, Islamabad (where Pakistan’s football team will play Jordan on 21 March 2024), fall under the jurisdiction of PSB.
Haroon Malik, Chairperson of Pakistan Football Federation (Normalization Committee), stated in one of his podcasts with ProSports that the PFF doesn’t have the mandate to renovate/maintain stadiums for their home matches. Thus, handing over all the responsibility to the PSB.
