gamesmanship

[ geymz-muh n-ship ]

/ ˈgeɪmz mənˌʃɪp /

the use of methods, especially in a sports contest, that are dubious or seemingly improper but not strictly illegal.

the technique or practice of manipulating people or events so as to gain an advantage or outwit one's opponents or competitors.

Origin of gamesmanship

1945–50; game¹ + -s³ + -manship, perhaps on the model of sportsmanship

He was sent off after the incident, but Ghana went on to lose, in large part due to his gamesmanship.

Luis Suarez, Uruguay’s Notorious Soccer Vampire, Strikes Again—Biting Italian in World Cup Win |Tunku Varadarajan |June 24, 2014 |DAILY BEAST
It was campaign spin and gamesmanship and seemed to be understood by everyone as such.

When Campaign Spin Becomes Fact |Stuart Stevens |March 21, 2014 |DAILY BEAST
All of this is just gamesmanship, but it matters for the purposes of the next debate.

Obama on Benghazi |Michael Tomasky |October 17, 2012 |DAILY BEAST
It was another element in the gamesmanship between the sexes.

Helen Gurley Brown’s Fashion Sense: the Power of Cleavage |Robin Givhan |August 14, 2012 |DAILY BEAST

No filibuster, no gamesmanship, a nice, clean vote—something Congress rarely does.

Supercommittee, Super Stakes |Eleanor Clift |November 3, 2011 |DAILY BEAST

gamesmanship

/ (ˈɡeɪmzmənˌʃɪp) /

informal the art of winning games or defeating opponents by clever or cunning practices without actually cheating

gamesman, noun