Discovering the economic contributions of mega-events for promoting tourism

The Institute of International Business and Governance (IIBG) of Hong Kong Metropolitan University has been promoting research in the areas of international business, governance and sustainability to respond to the current issues of business communities. To address a literature gap in the long-term impact of organizing mega-events for promoting tourism, Dr Matthew Yeung, Associate Director of IIBG, examined a range of events for their effects on attracting international tourists.

The research team of Dr Yeung analyzed the economic impact of hosting mega-events such as Formula 1 Grand Prix, ATP Tennis tournaments, PGA Golf, and film festivals. Through the analysis of data for a broad range of countries, their findings show an overall positive impact of hosting the events in terms of an increase in the number of inbound tourists. However, the level of impact differs from country to country and from event to event. In other words, in each country, the type of event that shines is different. For example, the economic contributions of hosting film festivals were more significant when the festivals were hosted in art countries (whose art and cultural destinations have received relatively more recommendations from travel guides), and hosting the Formula 1 was most effective in Canada but had no significant impact in Australia and the United Kingdom. The findings provide insights to countries and cities when organizing mega-events to promote tourism, in terms of informing policy makers the type of events that would give the best bang-for-the-buck.

 

For more details, please refer to the following journal articles generated from their studies:

‘Hosting annual international sporting events and tourism: Formula 1, golf or tennis?’, Tourism Economics.

‘Do film festivals attract tourists?’, Current Issues in Tourism.

‘Does Formula-1 Grand Prix attract tourists?’, Tourism Analysis.