The overall Congress theme is „Sport Psychology: Theories and Applications for Performance, Health and Humanity“. It covers all areas of sport and exercise psychology, including play, motor behaviour, and physical activity. The need for a better and more elaborated theoretical foundation is evident in research as well as in applied sport psychology. New theoretical concepts, empirical research, and evidence-based practice approaches are sought.

Performance has been a classical theme of sport psychology. Despite its long history, there is still a need to better understand the contribution of sport psychology to individual and team performance and to skill acquisition. Theoretical models featuring underlying psychological mechanisms, empirical data, and evaluations of interventions are requested.

Health has become a more prominent issue in modern societies and the contribution of exercise and physical activity is widely acknowledged. Professionals in the field have developed strategies to promote physical activity and prevent injuries in sport. The benefit of exercise on psychological functions and states are yet in need of more research, both theoretically and empirically.

The potential of sport for humanity has often been claimed. Theoretical explanations for a psychosocial benefit of sport in underprivileged populations, in groups with special needs, but also in third world countries are scarce, as are empirical data. Sport psychologists are also encouraged to contribute to a humanistic top level sport.