Mega-Events

ETOA's Discussion Paper on the Olympics

On the 6th July 2006 ETOA released a discussion paper on the Olympic Games and its effect on tourism in the host nation. With London winning the 2012 Olympics, there has been widespread mention of tourism as a major beneficiary of the Games.

The study examines the extent to which the Games benefit from tourism. It looks at sporting events and visitor numbers, the television audience and the impact of hosting the Olympic Games on a citys tourism infrastructure. It ends with studies of Barcelona and Sydney: cities that have had ostensibly "good" games for tourism.

The primary purpose of this study is to generate debate. It shows that there is no strong link between hosting sporting events and increased tourism. The television audiences regularly cited for such events as the Olympics are exaggerated. Attendees at the Games displace normal visitors and scare tourists away for some time. Both Sydney and Barcelona had "excellent" Olympic Games, but their tourism industries did not benefit. There appears to be little evidence of any benefit to tourism of hosting an Olympic Games, and considerable evidence of damage.

It is vital that the problems experienced by the host cities of past Games be acknowledged and addressed in order to avoid them reoccurring.

We believe that London can overcome these difficulties if time and money are spent on campaigns to smooth out the inevitable post-Olympic dip in tourism numbers. London needs to show that is going to be open for "business as usual throughout 2012" and that it is not going to be over-priced and "otherwise engaged".

Visit Britain responded to the discussion paper outlining the potential benefits and opportunities for a host destination based on previous experiences.

Discussion Paper

Response from Visit Britain

Discussion of the London 2012 Olympics at the ETOA's Annual Conference

Tom Wright, CEO Visit Britain and James Bidwell CEO of Visit London made their presentations at the Annual Conference in
November 2006. The conference attendees had the opportunity to express their opinions and ask questions regarding the effects
of the Olympics on their businesses.

ETOA's Submission to Welcome > Legacy

Research and Studies on Mega Sporting Events

Many papers have been written on the relation of mega sporting events and tourism, and numerous studies carried out
to assess the impacts on tourism. Some of the studies are listed here.

Bidding for the Olympics: Fool's Gold by R. A. Baade and Victor Matheson (2002)
Aspects of Olympic Games Tourism by H. Preuss (2004)
Mega-Sporting Events in Developing Nations by R. A. Baade and V. Matheson (2004)
Economic and Tourism Aspects of the Olympic Games by P. De Groote (2005)

London 2012 Olympic Games related studies:

Setting the Bar: Preparing for London Olympic's Legacy by T. Kornblatt (2006)
The Economic Impact of London 2012 Olympics by A. Blake (2005)

top

Mega-Events and Tourism