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This study provides a comprehensive bibliometric analysis of scientific production on sport and mental health, comparing the pre-pandemic (1983–2019) and post-pandemic (2020–2025) periods. A total of 2.053 publications indexed in the Web of Science (WoS) database under the sports sciences category and using the keywords “sports” and “mental health” were examined. The publication, citation, institutional, country-based, and keyword networks, along with the density map, were visualized using VOSviewer. The results show that research output remained limited and sporadic throughout the 1980s and 1990s, and gained marked momentum after 2010. The post-pandemic period demonstrated a substantial rise in publication volume, particularly in 2021 and 2022, reflecting heightened academic interest in the psychological consequences of COVID-19 and the role of sport in mental well-being. Author analyses reveal that the field was shaped by a small group of researchers prior to the pandemic, whereas the post-pandemic period saw the emergence of a broader, more productive, and interdisciplinary research community. Prior to the pandemic, Harvard University and the University of North Carolina had the highest number of publications. After the pandemic, Harvard University and the University of Melbourne had the highest number of publications. In terms of citation counts, Newcastle University had a high citation rate in the pre-pandemic period, while this shifted to the University of Melbourne in the post-pandemic period. The country-level analysis found that during the pre-pandemic period (1982–2019), the United States conducted 273 studies, followed by Australia, China, the United Kingdom, and Canada; Turkey produced 7 studies. In the post-pandemic period (2020–2025), the number of publications increased rapidly; the United States remained the leading contributor with 527 publications, followed by Australia with 217, the United Kingdom with 186, and Canada with 167, while Turkey reached 18. Similarly, citation patterns prior to the pandemic showed dominance by the United States (19.015 citations), Australia (11.126) and the United Kingdom (8.799), while Turkey received 847 citations. Although citation numbers were lower after the pandemic due to the recent publication of the studies, the United States (6.240), Australia (5.935), and the United Kingdom (4.206) maintained their leadership; Turkey received 397 citations. Network analyses demonstrate that collaboration patterns expanded significantly after the pandemic, resulting in denser, more interconnected, and multi-centred research structures. Keyword analyses reveal that pre-pandemic studies were organized around narrower themes such as mental health, physical activity, and depression, whereas the post-pandemic period saw the emergence of broader thematic clusters, including public health, epidemiology, resilience, sleep, stress, and COVID-19-related concepts. The findings indicate that the sport–mental health research field has undergone substantial growth and thematic diversification, evolving into a multidimensional, globally connected, and increasingly influential area within the sports sciences.