[2] It effectively replaced the 2023 Summer World University Games, that was set to be held in Yekaterinburg, Russia, which were cancelled due to the Russian invasion of Ukraine.

English peace campaigner Hodgson Pratt was an early advocate of such an event, proposing (and passing) a motion at the 1891 Universal Peace Congress in Rome to create a series of international student conferences in rotating host capital cities, with activities including art and sport.

[5] At the start of the 20th century, Jean Petitjean of France began attempting to organise a "University Olympic Games".

[6][7] A separate group organised an alternative university games in 1939 in Vienna, in post-Anschluss Germany.

[6] The onset of World War II ceased all major international student sport activities and the aftermath also led to division among the movement, as the CIE was disbanded and rival organisations emerged.

It was not until the 1957 World University Games that the Soviet Union began to compete in FISU events.

That same year, what had previously been a European competition became a truly global one, with the inclusion of Brazil, Japan and the United States among the competing nations.

The increased participation ultimately led to the establishment of the Universiade as the primary global student sport championship.