Literature Review: The Impact of Major Sporting Events

The Sports Development Impact of the Manchester 2002 Commonwealth Games: Initial Baseline ResearchThis report consists of a literature review of studies of previous major sporting events. It is intended as a general guide to the kind of studies carried out with a view to informing UK Sport about their intended research programme into the sports development impact of the Manchester Commonwealth Games in 2002.UK Spor

Trans-urban Networks of Learning, Mega Events and Policy Tourism: The Case of Manchester's Commonwealth and Olympic Games Projects

This paper argues for a rethinking of our understanding of what and where go into the ‘urban’ in the New Urban Politics (NUP). It contends that these issues have always been more complex, complicated and, most importantly, contested than has sometimes appeared to be the case in the literature. Using the example of one trans-urban policy learning network—that around the city of Manchester’s bids for the Olympic and Commonwealth Games—the paper makes the case for taking seriously the politics around comparison and referencing in making possible the NUP. It argues that there is a need to study the circuits, networks and webs in and through which urban knowledge and learning are constituted and moved around, and that often underpin the territorial outcomes that have been the traditional focus of scholars working on the NUP

Consuming the Olympics: the fan, the rights holder and the law

The London Olympic Games and Paralympics Act 2006 (the Act) received its Royal Assent on 30 March 2006, well over six years before the Games themselves are due to begin. The early passing of this Act is partly to ensure that the Olympic Delivery Authority (ODA) has sufficient time to organise the Games, and partly to ensure that Parliament has sufficient legislative time to implement the legal framework necessary to stage a modern Games to the satisfaction of the International Olympic Committee (IOC). The Act as a whole covers a variety of issues from the creation of the ODA and the defining of its role and powers in respect of planning and transport to the creation of several new criminal offences. Within the Act are certain key areas worthy of socio-legal investigation. Indeed, many of the provisions are emblematic of how the law maps the cultural and commercial tensions that we have identified elsewhere (James and Osborn, 2009 and Greenfield and Osborn, 2001). These tensions are particularly pronounced with respect to an event such as the Olympics, where the historically entrenched cultural values and identity of the Olympic movement must now be read alongside the commercial imperative of maximising income (Tomlinson, 2005)

The World Cup and social cohesion: bread and circuses or bread and butter?

Given the wide variety of histories, cultures, economies, relationships between government ants and civil societies it is impossible to generalise about the impact of large scale events of social cohesion. Further, there is a lack of relevant systematic and robust research on such issues, most especially in relation to developing economies, each with their own social, cultural and economic trajectories and each with sporting structures and histories (a major aspect of understanding such issues in South Africa). Within in this broad context this paper explores four possible ways that the World Cup might contribute directly and indirectly to increased ‘social cohesion’ in South Africa. These are: imagined communities; the development of forms of social capital via processes of event bidding, managing and delivery; the centrally important role of volunteers and investment in sport-for-development organisations

Large Scale Sports Events: Event Impact Framework, Report to UK Sport

Introduction Although large scale sports events can act as a catalyst for wider urban regeneration schemes, there is substantial scepticism about the claims made for the direct and indirect economic impact of such events This scepticism relates both to the motivations of those making such claims (mostly as part of the lobbying process in advance of the event) and a series of technical, econometric, concerns about the basis of such calculations and the use of multipliers.. Perhaps for this reason increasing emphasis is being placed on „non-economic‟, intangible benefits, benefits (Johnson and Sack, 1996). For example, Dwyer et al (2000 176) argue that „many events incur a financial loss to organisers but produce net benefits to the community‟. For example, Crompton (1995; 2004) lists such benefits as increased community visibility, enhanced community image and psychic income to city residents. Another reason for this increased emphasis is a growing need to secure public support for often very large scale investments – to emphasise the public good nature of such investments which are nearly always subsidised from taxation or Lottery funds by people who will have very little direct contact with the event. However, work on so-called intangibles is not well developed (especially in relation to sports events). There is a substantial body of academic literature reviewing what we do not know (which is a lot). Further, what we need to know is much too comprehensive and methodologically sophisticated for a user-friendly manual and the nature of available monitoring and evaluation budgets (e.g. Ritchie, 1984; Gibson, 1998; Getz, 1998; Hunn and Mangan, 1999; Mules, 1999; Fredline et al, 2003). There is also a substantial body of literature on the negative impacts of large scale sports events, ranging from attacks on civil rights, the harassment of the homeless, the destruction of low cost hosting and property price inflation (Centre on Housing Rights and Evictions, 2007a; 2007b) to crowding out of local residents, increased crime, prostitution and traffic congestion and disruption of business. However, this is not intended to be an academic exercise and is more of an attempt to explore the possibility of the development of a user-friendly, practical and feasible guide to measuring some of the impacts of various scales of events. Consequently, the emphasis is largely on the immediate and (hopefully) positive non-economic impacts of events – although any such measurement will inevitable also include some negative assessments. Because of the issues to be addressed, the literature drawn on is wide-ranging and diverse, with most of the key development work being in the areas of tourism studies and the more general event-management literature. For this reason this does not claim to be a comprehensive state-of-the-art review of the wide ranging (and often technical) debates and perspectives to be found in the academic literature - this would require an expert in each field (something to bear in mind if you decide to proceed with a manual) Rather, what follows is based on a reasonably informed selection relating to the core claims about the non-economic impacts of sports events and a broad review of limited research and related issues. Also, because so little directly relevant research has been undertaken, at points we explore theoretical issues. We have done so because it is imperative that any research and evaluation is based on some degree of understanding of the assumptions being made – undertaking monitoring and evaluation without some understanding of what is being assumed leads to poor design and wasted investment. Also such understanding is central to the interpretation of data and the issue of attribution of cause is an issue throughout

Country Reports April to June 2002

A compilation of country reports on the activities of the various European Clean Clothes Campaigns from April to June 2002

Sports stadiums and regeneration

Why is it that so many smart, well meaning people continue to think that massive stadium projects will bring big economic benefits to poorer communities who happen to live near them

Trans-urban Networks of Learning, Mega Events and Policy Tourism: The Case of Manchester's Commonwealth and Olympic Games Projects

Abstract Using Manchester's Olympic and Commonwealth Games bids, this paper examines how and why city officials learn -acquire knowledge that is used to make change -from other places about mega-events and events-led regeneration. It reveals how Manchester's public and private sector elites visited various cities to compare and to learn as part of their bid assembling activities. It also highlights how other cities' representatives have visited Manchester to learn from its hosting of the 2002 Commonwealth Games bid. The paper seeks to build conceptually on existing work on the New Urban Politics (NUP), entrepreneurial urbanism and mega-events by addressing the links between cities competing with, and learning from, elsewhere. Drawing on the growing work on making urban policies mobile, it reveals the trans-urban underpinnings of entrepreneurial urbanism, making a case for taking seriously the circuits, networks and webs in and through which urban knowledge and learning is constituted and moved around

What is event led regeneration? Are we confusing terminology or will London 2012 be the first Games to truly benefit the local existing population?

The term regeneration means keeping the locality available for the same social classes and improving the infrastructure for their benefit, however examination of previous games including Barcelona 1992 and Sydney 2000 has shown evidence of renaissance, referring to ‘upgrading’ the social structure of the area. The property prices in both cities rose as a result of the hosting of the games for both home owners and renters thus changing the social structure of the areas in questions. This term, renaissance, was used by Mace et al, (2007) in their paper about the urban changes to east Manchester. A further term called social rejuvenation is more appropriate because it implies an intervention in the continuing decline of as area without specifying for whom the improvements are intended thus allowing the market forces to determine the social makeup, and therefore avoiding accusations of letting the locals down through unfulfilled promises. This paper examines in detail both Sydney 2000 and Barcelona 1996 Olympic Games organisers’ strategies in developing their cities in order to host their respective games and in doing so the effects these plans had on the demographic structure of the local populations. Lessons learned are then made into recommendations for London 2012 where already communities are being displaced and the social structure is in danger of changing, with the promised ‘regeneration’ of East London (ODA, 2005) therefore never materialising