Impact of Mega Sporting Events on Urban Development and Legacy in Host Countries - Case Study Example

Impact of Mega Sporting Events (MSEs) on Urban Development and Legacy in Host Countries Impact of Mega Sporting Events (MSEs) on Urban Development and Legacy in Host Countries 2006 World Cup in Germany Impact on Urban Development Germany sought to host the 2006 World Cup as a national rebranding strategy (Dowse, 2011). The main impact of the event is that it took the role of public-private partnerships in urban development to the next level(Dowse, 2011). The Federal Government developed the strategy for the World Cup but left its implementation to stakeholders that included the host cities, Local Organizing Committees and the business community. Football clubs bore the costs of stadia improvement. Only Berlin and Leipzig received government subsidies for infrastructure improvement. Public funds were mainly used to market the event and improve and expand the capacity of public transport(Dowse, 2011). Legacy The event’s finals were regarded a resounding success given Germany’s win(Dowse, 2011).Government’s objective of rebranding Germany as the ultimate tourist destination was met. The official final report on the event, issued later in 2006, indicated that expectations were exceeded. Some scholars have described the event as the most fan-centred World Cup in the history of the event. The is largely seen as being responsible for the country’s rise up the Anholt-GfK Roper Nation Brands IndexTM, economic and tourism gains and the growing popular support for Chancellor Angela Merkel (Dowse, 2011). Problems Encountered Germany was accused of foul play and bribery in her bid to host the 2006 World Cup (Dowse, 2011). The Federal Government refuted the claim by asserting that the German Football Association, not the Federal Government, initiated and funded the bid to have the country host the event (Dowse, 2011). 2010 World Cup in South Africa Impact on Urban Development In the run up to the2010 World Cup, South Africa spent approximately $ 3.9 billion on stadia and other infrastructure (Matheson, 2012). The organizers of the events justified the massive expenditure on the expected influx of tourist and commercial activity(Bonthuys, 2010). However, as in most cases, actual increases in tourist and commercial activity fell well below the projections. During the World Cup, South Africa attracted approximately 220,000 new tourists from the non-South African Development Community (SADC) (Peeters, Matheson, & Szymanski, 2014). Throughout 2010, the country attracted 300,000 new arrivals. These figures were much lower than had been projected. The organizers further claimed that, in the long run, mega investments in physical infrastructure such as stadia would promote local development. However, there is no evidence to anchor these claims (Matheson, 2012). Legacy Government officials had claimed that the 2010 World Cup would create thousands of temporary and permanent jobs(Hermann, Plessis, & Gelden, 2012). Ironically, in its aftermath, the World Cup increased unemployment in the cities that hosted the event by 6.6 percent (Oosterban, 2013). The explanation given for the phenomenon is that the World Cup generated many short-term jobs that elicited massive rural-urban migration (Oosterban, 2013). However, after the World Cup boom, the drones of workers found themselves with no work. Problems Encountered The main problem that South Africa faced was how to raise the $3.9 billion required to improve infrastructure in host cities (Matheson, 2012). In the end, however, the government managed to raise the money from internal sources (Matheson, 2012). The other major challenge was securing the right host the event(Konrad Adenauer Stiftung, 2011), although Joseph Nye’s “soft power” came in handy(Dowse, 2011). 2014 World Cup in Brazil Impact on Urban Development The 2014 World Cup in Brazil transformed the landscapes of three Brazilian cities – Natal, Recife and Salvador(Ernst & Young Terco, 2011). The three cities were among the twelve that hosted the event. Each of the three cities received a new stadium at a total cost of $ 650 million. Each of the remaining nine cities also received a face-lift of its stadia and airports. The event also led to the training of some 306, 000 Brazilians working in the tourism industry across the twelve cities. The aim of the training was to impart the workers with the vital skills they needed to handle the anticipated influx of sports tourists. Unfortunately, as is often the case, the infrastructure and skills improvement initiatives have not been sustained in the aftermath of the event(Kleijssen, 2014). . Legacy The Brazilian Ministry of Sports had projected that the World Cup and its associated projects would create 394,000 permanent jobs and 381,000 temporary ones (Kleijssen, 2014). In addition, the Brazilian Ministry of Sports projected that the mega event would inject a total of $70 billion into the Brazilian economy (Valente & Noguera, 2014). The extent to which these expectations have been met, close to a year after the World Cup, is not clear. Overall, there is significant difficulty in assessing the economic benefits of MSEs (Dowse, 2011). Problems Encountered The biggest problem Brazil had to contend with in hosting the 2014 World Cup was how to raise the close to $4 billion needed to build the three new stadia, and renovate the existing ones and the airports. Moreover, an additional $280 million was needed to train the 306,000 tourism industry workers. The solution lay in public-private partnerships, especially for the stadia (Valente & Noguera, 2014). 2018 World Cup in Russia Impact on Urban Development 2018 will not be the first time Russia will be hosting an MSE; the country hosted the Universiade and the Sochi Winter Olympics in 2013 and 2014, respectively(Makarychev & Yatsyk, 2014). The 2018 World Cup is set to be hosted in eleven Russian cities. For each of these cities, the event presents opportunities for rebranding and marketing. Take Nizhny Novgorod, for instance. The city is the capital of the Federal District of Volga and is the fifth most populous Russian city. The city has a two-pronged branding strategy for 2018: the city with the "mysterious Russian soul" on the one hand and an industrial hub with leading technology, on the other. To most locals and foreigners, however, the city remains largely a provincial one with underdeveloped urban infrastructure and a weak civil society. Legacy The Russia 2018 host cities expect to rip a host of economic benefits from the events. However, going by the known fact that actual benefits are almost always fewer than the estimates and the inherent difficulty in measuring those benefits (Dowse, 2011), Russian authorities may need to tame their expectations. Expected Problems It is expected that Russia’s major challenge is going to be raising funds to provide infrastructure in the infrastructure deficient cities such as Nizhny Novgorod and improve the same in others (Makarychev & Yatsyk, 2014). The country could borrow Germany’s model of public-private partnerships in addressing the challenge (Dowse, 2011). 2022 World Cup in Qatar Impact on Urban Development Qatar’s main challenge – high temperatures – could be the country’s blessing in disguise as far as the impact of the 2022 FIFA World Cup on urban development is concerned. During summer, temperature in Qatar ranges between 25 and 460C ( Sofotasiou, Hughes, & Calautit, 2015). Coupled with a relative humidity of up to 100%, that range of temperature can easily rise to over 500C. Such high temperatures are dangerous and could cause heat illnesses if one is exposed to direct sunlight for hours. The challenge could stir Qatar to undertake architectural breakthroughs in the area of stadia construction. Plans are underway to construct nine new stadia and renovate three existing ones at a cost of $3 billion. These planned works together with the heat problem present an opportunity for Qatar to invest in cutting-edge stadium technologies that would make the country a premium sports tourism destination. Some of the technologies include aero-thermal comfort, evaporative cooling and solar cooling( Sofotasiou, Hughes, & Calautit, 2015). Legacy To Qatar, the hosting of the 2022 World Cup presents a milestone in the journey towards the Qatar National Vision 2030 that aims to ensure adequate reserves for posterity( Sofotasiou , Hughes, & Calautit, 2015). Expected Problems As stated above, Qatar main problem is that of excessive heat. Cutting edge cooling technologies are the solution, albeit at an enormous cost ( Sofotasiou, Hughes, & Calautit, 2015). References Sofotasiou, P., Hughes, B., & Calautit, J. (2015). Qatar 2022: Facing the FIFA World Cup climatic and legacy challenges. Sustainable Cities and Society, 14 16-30. Bonthuys, E. (2010). The 2010 Football World Cup and the regulation of sex work in South Africa. Johannesburg: University of Johannesburg. Dowse, S. (2011). Power Play: International Politics, Germany, South Africa and the FIFA World Cup™. Johanesburg: The South African Institute of International Affairs (SAIIA). Ernst & Young Terco. (2011). Sustainable Brazil: Social and Economic Impacts of the 2014 World Cup. São Paulo: Ernst & Young Terco. Hermann, U., Plessis, L., & Gelden, S. (2012). Socio-economic impacts of the 2010 FIFA World Cup. African Journal for Physical, Health Education, Recreation and Dance (AJPHERD), 3 64-75. Kleijssen, F. (2014). FIFA World Cup 2014 in Brazil: Social Impacts and Policy Strategies. Milan: Bocconi University. Konrad Adenauer Stiftung. (2011). Sustainable Mega Events in Developing Countries: Experiences and insights from Host Cities in South Africa, India and Brazil. Johanesburg: Konrad Adenauer Stiftung. Makarychev, A., & Yatsyk, A. (2014). Brands, cities and (post-)politics: A comparative analysis of urban strategies for the Universiade 2013 and the World Football Cup 2018 in Russia. European Urban and Regional Studies, 1-18. Matheson, V. (2012). Assessing the infrastructure impact of mega-events in emerging economies. Worcester: College of the Holy Cross. Oosterban, M. A. (2013). The impact of the FIFA World Cup 2010 on unemployment in South Africa. Utrecht: Utrecht University. Peeters, T., Matheson, V., & Szymanski, S. (2014). Tourism and the 2010 World Cup: Lessons for Developing Countries (Abstract). Journal of African Economies, 23.2 290-320. Valente, A., & Noguera, J. (2014). Mega Sporting Events and Legacy: The Case of the 2014 World Cup. Valencia: University oof Valencia. Read More