Hosting of International Sporting Events (DP IB Geography)
Revision Note
Written by: Briley Habib
Reviewed by: Bridgette Barrett
Factors Affecting the Hosting of International Sporting Events
Hosting an international event such as the Olympics or the World Cup is expensive
Countries lobby to try and persuade organisers of the event that they are the best location
When a country makes a bid to run the event, they must ensure that they can successfully carry out the building project and host the games
This includes economic factors including the ability to raise the money for:
Build the facilities
Developing the infrastructure
The following infrastructure would be needed for international games:
Various stadiums to host all of the different teams or events
Training facilities for competitors
Hotels or other accommodations for competitors and fas
An effective public transport system
Unfortunately, there have been accusations of corruption in organisations which run the events, such as the International Olympic Committee and Federation Internationale de Football Association
There are various political factors involved which need to be taken account of when considering whether a country bids for an international event:
The government will be the primary source of funding and will need to allocate public funds to large infrastructure buildings
Government must ensure that they can ensure adequate safety for visitors and participants which might be difficult to do if the country is known to be unsafe
Diplomatic relations also can influence the hosting of the games such as when the USA and Soviet Union boycotted each other’s games during the Cold War
Countries usually have a cultural link to the event being held
However, the event may be used to raise the profile of a sport(s) in a country
Qatar does not have a football tradition but the 2022 World Cup was held there
Advantages and Disadvantages of Hosting an International Sporting Event
| Advantages | Disadvantages |
|---|---|---|
Economy | Hosting an international event brings increased tourism Increased temporary job opportunities Infrastructure development, which provides long-term benefits to the host city | Montreal hosted the Olympic Games in 1976, and made a loss of over $1 billion, which took many years to pay off |
Political and worldwide exposure | Hosting an international event increases the country’s visibility on the global stage and promotes the country for further tourism opportunities | There were many criticisms of worker abuse in Qatar before the 2022 Fifa World Cup |
Sports development | Inspiring youth to try new sports, this may lead to more international sportspersons in the future | Many sports do not continue with funding after the event has finished |
Community engagement | As the competition attracts hundreds of thousands of spectators, there is a need for volunteers from the local community to support the event |
|
Cultural exchange | International visitors can share their culture with the host country and vice versa |
Case Study: Netball World Cup
The Netball World Cup (NWC) has been an international event for 60 years
The NWC was hosted in South Africa in July and August 2023
The host city was Cape Town in South Africa
The final was held at the Cape Town International Convention Centre
New Zealand and Australia have dominated the World Cup and have won every one of the last 15 titles
16 teams took part in the international competition:
Australia
Tonga
Fiji
Zimbabwe
England
Malawi
Scotland
Barbados
Jamaica
South Africa
Wales
Sri Lanka
New Zealand
Uganda
Trinidad and Tobago
Singapore
Costs and Benefits of the Netball World Cup
Costs | Benefits |
|---|---|
The arena at Cape Town's International Convention Centre was not always full and many tickets remained unsold The cheapest tickets for the tournament were R500, which was too high for many local people to attend and much higher than the Women’s T20 Cricket World Cup, which was also held in South Africa For the weekday matches during stage two preliminaries, the ticket sales dipped to below 60% The total budget was set at R88 million to host the games There were reports that Australian fans had paid over AU$5,000 for accommodation and VIP tickets but when they arrived, their tickets had not been allocated Cape Town's International Convention Centre is not a traditional netball centre so had to be adapted for the games Major General Charl Annandale, the tournament’s security advisor, said that there had been reports of theft from the teams from Jamaica, Trinidad and Tobago, and Singapore A taxi strike took place during the World Cup, which limited the number of transport options available from the hotels to the stadium | Global coverage of the sport’s 60 games was available through the OTT platform NetballPass It is the first time the event has been held on African soil The Local Organising Committee and World Netball provided local schools and fans with 1,000 tickets a day, to encourage future recognition of the sport The local hospitality industry reported a positive increase in occupancy rates Hosting the Netball World Cup also bolsters Cape Town’s fast-growing reputation as a global hotspot for international sports events across a variety of sporting codes The Netball World Cup 2023 (NWC 2023) was named the ‘Best Sporting Event of the Year 2023’ at the Sports Business Awards 2023 in London Sponsorship sales were double when compared to the 2019 World Cup The host broadcaster, SuperSport, also made history as the NWC2023 was recorded and produced by an all-women crew #pivot4planet campaign was introduced for the first time to enable the games to be more sustainable A full carbon footprint and impact report is being produced for the first time in the history of the event, which included details of the longer-term legacy projects All clothing, hats and bags used by support crews and for sale as official merchandise at the main tournament were locally produced Multi-bin recycling stations at the games allowed for separation at source with a goal of diverting at least 80% from landfills through recycling and collecting organic materials for use as animal feed More than 400 volunteers, officials and support staff were trained in responsible event-hosting Nearly R2 billion was raised from sporting events in 2023, which included the Netball World Cup Reports of over 26,000 job opportunities were created Cape Town suffers from electricity shortages but there were no electricity shortages during the World Cup which meant that the games were able to run successfully |
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