Investment in sporting infrastructure in cities over the past 20 years was not primarily aimed at getting the local community involved in sport, but was instead aimed at attracting tourists, encouraging inward investment and changing the image of the city. The first example of this new strategy was seen in Sheffield with the investment of £147 million in sporting facilities to host the World Student Games of 1991. More recently, Manchester spent over £200 million on sporting venues in order to host the 2002 Commonwealth Games, with a further £470 million expenditure on other non-sport infrastructure investment in Sportcity in east Manchester. In the British context, most of the cities following this strategy of using sport for economic regeneration have been industrial cities, not normally known as major tourist destinations. The drivers of such policies were the need for a new image and new employment opportunities caused by the loss of their conventional industrial base. This article analyses the justification for such investments in sport in cities and assesses the evidence for the success of such strategies.
Purpose -The purpose of this paper is to investigate whether attending one-off sport events might inspire audiences to increase their participation in sport or recreational physical activity. Design/methodology/approach -Primary data collection was undertaken with spectators aged 16 and over at three major sport events held in the UK in 2010. The findings are based on an aggregate sample of 2,312 respondents. Findings -Around two-thirds of respondents reported that their event experience had inspired them to increase their participation in sport or physical activity. The inspiration effect varied according to age and respondents' predisposition to sport. The main factors that caused the inspiration were linked directly to the athletes and the competition. The provision of information about opportunities to undertake sport was found to be the most important lever to convert inspiration into participation. Originality/value -Evidence of the impact of major sport events on mass participation is relatively scarce and inconclusive. In order for any "trickle-down" effect to occur, it would be reasonable to assume that audiences would first be inspired by their event experience. It is this basic sense of inspiration that the research aimed to measure.
Purpose -The purpose of this paper is to focus on the methodologies used to evaluate major events. It aims to establish the most practically-relevant methodology for analysing the economic impact of routinely-held major events and to identify the key methodological issues for future consideration. Design/methodology/approach -The paper draws on empirical research undertaken by the Sport Industry Research Centre using the direct expenditure approach (DEA). Findings -The DEA is the most pragmatic and cost-effective method for evaluating the economic impact of medium-sized major events. However, the approach is only as robust as the quality of data utilised to derive estimates. Key emerging methodological issues are measuring attendance, consideration of direct first-round leakage and treatment of organisational spend and event surplus/deficit. Research limitations/implications -The DEA limits the measurement of economic impact to first-round spending associated with an event. It is not suitable for measuring large-scale mega-events that require a more holistic and advanced method of event evaluation. Originality/value -The paper considers the methods used to evaluate events in the context of balancing academic rigour with the everyday practical realities and constraints facing event organisers and researchers. It discusses existing and emerging methodological considerations and techniques for dealing with these. The paper will be of particular interest to researchers and practitioners from the event industry carrying out or commissioning economic impact studies.
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