This study investigates the effects of the sport education model on physical literacy and its subsequent impact on daily physical activity levels among university students. Through mediation analysis, this study seeks to uncover the role of situational motivation in these effects. The participants in this study consist of 188 university students (male n = 132, female n = 70; mean age: 18.53 years) who were exposed to an 8-class, 10-lesson season as part of their physical education curriculum. Self-report measures were collected at baseline (1st lesson), post-intervention (10th lesson), and follow-up phases (5 weeks after). The results reveal significant mediation effects at the post-intervention (β = .201, t = 3.576, p < .001) and follow-up (β = .187, t = 3.069, p < .01) phases. Additionally, significant direct effects of physical literacy on physical activity metabolic minutes were found in the post-intervention phase (β = .293, t = 1.807, p < .05). Gender differences were also observed in the multigroup analysis. These findings demonstrated the motivation mediates the impact of the sport education model on promoting physical activity and highlight the multidimensional nature of physical literacy. Future research is recommended to explore the application of this pedagogical model in different educational contexts and populations, utilizing robust analytical methods.
