This article engages in the discussion on international organisations as global players. IOs appear as paradoxical arenas of regulatory cooperation. Although they have been perceived as influential, they operate with unequal resources and tend to be increasingly contested. While acknowledging their role in transnational policy framing, the article discusses the power of IOs critically. It stresses their dependence (on states and external funds) and analyses how these organisations attempt to remain relevant policy players. The case of the transnational governance of higher education as a secondary policy field sheds light on the relations between international and European organisations (Council of Europe, European Commission, OECD, UNESCO, the World Bank). In order to explain how IOs that face limited financial resources seek to maintain their position in transnational policymaking, the demonstration highlights the material, practical and ideational aspects of interorganisational coordination. The article is based on empirical research conducted in several countries: over 50 semistructured qualitative interviews, archives of main IOs, and institutional documents.