Internationalization of Sports Events Through Branding Opportunities

Abstract

The internationalization of sports events and the increasing reach of brand identification are now a central part of the world's cultural and commercial activity, and the way that these events are branded is a key part of the story. This chapter reviews the internationalization of events, trends in contemporary practice in terms of organization, and where these developments are going, looking in particular at the role of branding. This is a book on sports, so we are talking about the commercial sports world, which is the main growth area, and has very important social, economic, and cultural implications. People's interest in sports has several dimensions. Initially, as someone brought up in England, a Geordie and a fan of Newcastle United Football Club, persons whose favorite pastime has been watching football, more familiarly known in the UK as soccer. Then later in their lives, they switched clubs to the NFL, the National Football League in the US, becoming Dallas Cowboys supporters. But more recently, people have been going to watch cricket, as England has two world-class grounds.