jonathan grix - university of birmingham

IMAGE LEVERAGING OF SPORTS MEGA-EVENTS: GERMANY AND THE 2006 FIFA

WORLD CUP

OVERVIEW

Introduction Rationale for hosting sports ‘megas’ Case study: Germany ‘Social’ leveraging and the ‘feel-good’ factor Summary

INTRODUCTION

‘Image’ leveraging extends traditional research on sports ‘megas’

Extant literature tends to focus on ‘post-hoc’ impact studies of ‘legacy’

‘Leveraging’ studies looks at strategies of how to produce a legacy

Most work on economic leveraging of events

TREND TOWARDS ‘IMAGE’ LEVERAGING

1. Majority of recent/up-coming SME bound by focus on leveraging ‘image’

2. Less interested in host nation elite sport performance

3. ‘Emerging’ states wishing to alter their image/with troubled histories = most to gain

4. Concept of ‘soft power’ can aid explanation of image legacies

2008: Olympics, China (Beijing)

2010: Commonwealth Games, India (Delhi)

2014: Winter Olympics, Russia (Sochi)

2014: FIFA World Cup, Brazil 2016: Olympics, Brazil (Rio

de Janeiro) 2018: FIFA World Cup,

Russia 2022: FIFA World Cup, Qatar

SOME GENERAL OBSERVATIONS

Major shift from advanced capitalist states to

developing, small and ‘emerging’ states

Rationale for hosting usually premised on 5 broad hoped-for ‘legacies’

LEGACY 1

Mega-events/elite sport = participation (key Olympic legacy) – little empirical evidence

LEGACY 2

Economic = ambiguous; tourism = often lower

LEGACY 3

Urban regeneration – yes, but beneficial to society? (cf. ‘social cleansing’; Westfield Group-owned shopping centre etc.)

LEGACY 4

‘Feelgood’ = some empirical evidence, but not leveraged

LEGACY 5

Enhancing national image (‘Soft Power’) = evidence that states believe this to be the case

CASE STUDY: 2006 FIFA WORLD CUP

Successful event for changing national image Germany central to history of political use of

sport (1936/1954/1972/2006; GDR) Prior to 2006 Germany’s image v. negative 2006 FIFA World Cup = witnessed by a

cumulative global TV audience of all matches over 26 billion (FIFA 2011)

GERMAN STRATEGY FOR LEVERAGING ‘IMAGE’

Focus on ‘leveraging’ rather than hoping for ‘legacy’

4 key ingredients to success: 1. Leveraging strategy 2. Long-term, carefully planned campaigns to

improve Germany’s image abroad 3. Fan-centred approach 4. Feelgood-factor

1. WHAT IS ‘LEVERAGING’?

Pre-event strategy to get the most out of an event

‘Leveraging’ generally understood as the activities ‘which seek to maximise the long-term benefits of an event’

Deliberate, strategic modus operandi as opposed to haphazard, hopeful and lucky

Usually targeted at something specific (economic/urban regeneration/’image’)

2. GERMANY 2006 – IMAGE CAMPAIGNS

A ‘cluster’ of campaigns designed to leverage the most out of the FWC

German National Tourist promoted Germany as a travel destination well in advance of the FWC

‘National Service and Friendliness Campaign’ ‘Augmentation’ – events around the FWC Land of Ideas=showcasing Germany and

attracting tourism and foreign investment

3. FAN-CENTRED APPROACH

Public viewing ‘spaces’ unprecedented success Over 20 million people joined in the parties at

public ‘Fan Fests’ Large viewing screens set up in the 12 host

cities in Germany (women=44%; 22% in stadiums)

2 million foreign visitors to Germany All games were 98% full to capacity

4. ‘FEEL-GOOD FACTOR’

Little research on ‘feelgood’ factor in sport Clearly something accompanying mass sports

events Germany set out to create a feelgood factor …which leads to a sense of ‘communitas’ a ‘we-

ness’ among fans/participants The scale of a sense of ‘celebration’ and ‘social

camaraderie’ in Germany unexpected How can communitas be marshalled to affect

change in society?

INCREASE IN TOURISM Year-on-year increase in tourism and ‘overnight stays’

SUMMARY

Germany (2006) successful ‘image’ leveraging

= probably influenced recent/next hosts Fan-centred approach and ‘feel-good’ factor will

be central in future Sports mega-events with the greatest impact

have been those who have pre-planned, pre-event leveraging strategies