They can grant a great deal of autonomy to various federations (as in the US and Great Britain); devote significant public resources to sports for political purposes (as in Russia and other dictatorships); or insulate publicly financed sports institutions from partisan politics in order to ensure continuity (as in Italy and France).
Por outro lado, a ausência de uma política desportiva real (ou a sua desagregação) pode tornar-se uma enorme desvantagem.