Resumen de Stakeholder reflections on the relaunching of the post-COVID-19 sport event tourism industry in South Africa
Tracy Daniels, Tembi Maloney Tichaawa
The current paper examines stakeholder reflections on the post COVID-19 sport event tourism subsector in South Africa. The paper is premised on the impact of the COVID-19 pandemic on the sport events tourism sub-sector, characterised by large-scale cancellations of sport events and restrictions on movement of people. Grounded by the sport tourism framework and the stakeholder theory, the main objective of the paper was to present stakeholder insights on the relaunching of the post COVID-19 sport event tourism subsector using South Africa as a case study. Fourteen in depth interviews were conducted with key informants involved in the sport event tourism subsector. The empirical findings show that the subsector experienced significant negative impacts but that stakeholders are engaged in several innovative activities including cross-sector collaboration, efforts to reignite demand and contemporary marketing initiatives making use of new technologies in efforts to counter the negative effects of the pandemic and to ensure future sport event tourism resilience and sustainability. The study makes a significant contribution to existing literature by articulating emerging trends in the sport tourism as the sector post-Covid-19 pandemic. In addition, it provides insights which ensure the future resilience of the subsector and its use as a tool for economic, societal and urban development.
