Total contribution of travel & tourism to Global Economy, US$8,27Trillion.

Sports tourism, directly and indirectly, supports the global economy in terms of GDP and employment. Companies are offering sports tourism goods and services from their suppliers, forming the tourism supply chain. The purchasing decisions are made by the frontline companies that deal with accommodation, hospitality, and transportation services.

The travel and tourism industry is one of the world’s largest industries with a global economic contribution (direct, indirect and induced) of over 7.6 trillion U.S. dollars in 2016. The direct economic impact of the industry, including accommodation, transportation, entertainment and attractions, was approximately 2.3 trillion U.S. dollars that year. A number of countries, such as France and the United States, are consistently popular tourism destinations, but other, less well-known countries are quickly emerging in order to reap the economic benefits of the industry.

Worldwide, the tourism industry has experienced steady growth almost every year. International tourist arrivals increased from 528 million in 2005 to 1.19 billion in 2015. Figures were forecasted to exceed 1.8 billion by 2030. Each year, Europe receives the most international tourist arrivals. It also produces the most travelers: with approximately 607 million outbound tourists in 2015, the region had more than double that of the second largest tourist origin, the Asia Pacific region.

In 2015, global international tourism revenue reached approximately 1.26 trillion U.S. dollars, having almost doubled since 2005. That year, China had the largest international tourism expenditure, followed by the United States and Germany. The leading city in international visitor spending was Dubai, where tourists spent more than 31.3 billion U.S. dollars in 2016.

YOUTH SPORTS

Living in an age of technology where travel and communications have improved with dizzying speed, the world has transformed to a global village. In it, tourism is fast reaching its zenith of success, with Youth Sports earning over US$ 7 billion in travel alone.

According to the statistics portal Statistica, the global sports market total revenue in 2005 was US$46.5 billion. In 2018, this revenue is expected to be US$ 100 billion. Statistics also show that around 75.3 million adults have attended organized sports events in the past 5 years and that 2/5ths of US adults are sports travelers.

In 2018, sports tourism is set to emerge as a massively lucrative component of the global tourism market. And, where there is money, there will be competition. Vendors who are looking to consolidate their standing in the global sports tourism market will benefit from the following trends. These top-5 market trends will realign sports tourism to sync with the modern customer’s sensibilities and demands.

1) Hybrid events gain popularity

Combining other specialty fixtures with the core sporting event accomplishes two objectives:

a) Attracts a wider demographic that may or may not be interested in the sporting events. b) Offers core sports tourists more engagement value and improves loyalty.

For organizers, the benchmark will be the commonalities pertaining to production and promotional requirements. Combining an event that naturally jells with a sport will bring in new audiences. Also, boost local businesses and importantly, enlist a new segment of advertisers.

2) Sports tourism market invites new events

2018 might prove to be year of the sports tourism entrepreneur. The high profitability associated with the global sports tourism market will encourage the creation of new sporting events. Planning and execution of a unique sporting event, when strategized as a community, can be used effectively as part of a regional development strategy.

It isn’t entirely necessary that these self-made events comply with an existing and popular sport, either. In 2018, different parts of America will host such sporting events as bouldering, roller derby, pickleball and (wait for it) Quidditch!

3) Emergence of e-sports and infusion of technology

The primary USP of e-sports is that it is already high technology. E-sporting events piggyback off the immense popularity of online gaming and bring together acclaimed online gamers in an offline setting. Therefore, there is an affinity here, arising from the growing popularity of gaming (esp, with the millennials) and the target audiences’ (again, the millennials predominantly) natural inclination towards technology driven solutions.

XPO Game Festival, last hosted in Tulsa, Oklahoma in October 2017, perfectly summarizes the lure of sports tourism that attracts a large demographic and is rather unconventional. According to market experts, in 2018 e-sports will emerge as the most lucrative component of the global sports tourism market.

4) Social media integration leads to bigger audiences

With the advent of live videos on such social media platforms as Facebook and Instagram, organizers are afforded a far-reaching promotional option with minimal investment. Obviously, this changes the game tremendously as the focus will now shift from media and promotional hubs to social media resources.

Today, mobile internet is a powerful enabler of events that may otherwise not find an audience easily. Consequently, proponents of the sports tourism market will lean heavily on social media to get the word out in 2018.

5) The evolution of sponsorship in sports

Gone are the days when the relationship between a sponsor and the sport was limited to customized team apparel and on-the-field signposts and hoardings. Today, sponsors want to play a bigger role as part of their investment. And, they want to affect this by gaining more proactive visibility on and off the playing arena.

In 2018, the onus will lie in creating compelling storylines that highlight the sponsor’s involvement with the sport. This story needs to be strategically promoted through visual content that fans can share and comment upon. Consequently, the sponsors will move away from the larger picture and feature in grassroot discussions. As a result, pulling in hardcore fans and new recruits alike and rendering them an indispensable part of the experience.

Enablers of the global sports tourism market, between 2019-2023:

Attractions – the widest application of the word ‘attractions’ relates to existing natural and built sport tourism infrastructure of basic devices, buildings and service institutions, infrastructure of themed hotels, dining and tailored recreation.

Sports Resorts – train and play in training campuses with high standards of facilities

Events –current and potential events for development attracting more visitors to attend, participate and stay longer in the host destination to include competitive and non competitive sports and adventure activity.

Sports Infrastructure – Facility owners pushing the sport event boundaries

Heritage – Teaching visitors how to playnational games in local sports fields through the creation of authentic cultural sport tourism experiences, alternatively adding local touch to known sporting.

# Star power will continue to sway opinions   

Where sporting events are concerned, the players are poised as the bridge between the sponsor’s sales pitch and the audience. In 2018, star power will still hold the most potential when sponsors are looking to connect with an existing or prospective customer base. However, aside from just the visual media, popular sport stars will likely make a bigger impact with their social media accounts. Already, players such as Maria Sharapova, Roger Federer and Virat Kohli are major influencers on Twitter, Instagram and Facebook.

# Communities built around sporting events

The growing influence of the sports tourism market will ensure that communities upgrade, expand and expansively monetize their existing sporting facilities. As a result, communities will utilize tourism-related taxes (lodging, food and beverages, etc.) to build and upgrade sports venues that feed into the sports tourism movement. Consequently, heavy infrastructural customizations at the city level will accommodate the growing interest that their local sporting event is likely to generate on the national and international stages.

# Volunteers or employees?

The use of volunteers will undergo a major change in protocol in 2018, stemming from the case of Liebesman v. Competitor Group, Inc., wherein clear definition for the role of a volunteer was sought in terms of the job description and remuneration. The judgment in this case is deferred for early 2018 and the fallout from this ruling will redefine how event organizers identify, recruit, employ and possibly compensate such ‘volunteers.’

# Big Data lays the groundwork for future iterations

Digitalization is already a key factor in most globally popular sporting events. Eventually, the influence of technology will trickle down to lesser-known events and allow them the opportunity to better analyze available data. As a convergence point of consumer interests, sponsorship agendas and sports associations, sporting events put forth masses of associated data. With the latest technology, event organizers can sift through big data and find favorable patterns that can affect future profitability.

# Customized packaging ensures a bigger target audience

Going forward, the sports tourism market will lean squarely on the broad shoulders of the global travel industry. Furthermore, event organizers will heavily customize their ticket offerings to include audiences that may not necessarily be into sports. For instance, selling a select sporting event like Alaska’s annual ‘Iditarod Trail Sled Dog Race’ to a fan would be considerably easy. However, the fan’s spouse and family can also be pulled in by highlighting the various attractions in Alaska and customizing tour packages that are more about fun than just about the sport.

Eventually, it will be more than just about the sporting event.