We all love a good sporting competition, tournament, or championship. Spectators tune in for the stories, the tactical nuances and to see what the players and athletes can do. The big events are, on a global scale, the Summer Olympics, the football World Cup and the Tour de France, however there are also several smaller multi-sports events such as the Commonwealth Games, the Asian Games and the Pan-American Games. Fans and players alike look forward to these spectacles as they come around. What do they all have in common? What can the organisers of smaller tournaments take with them in order to promote their own events? Here are some thoughts from the Half Court Press…
Competitive Games
It’s important to have teams of similar abilities to compete against each other. There will always be a type of differential in talent between groups of players, in fact that’s part of the charm of an invasion sport such as hockey, or football. It’s interesting to see how different groups band together in order to achieve certain objectives. A slight variation in ability can be interesting as teams or individuals will adapt tactics and strategy in line with their own capacity and that of the opposition. However, too much of a gulf in class can allow the games to become ludicrously one sided, or uninteresting.
The recent FIH Hockey 5’s tournaments, or EHF EuroHockey Qualifiers are good examples of how not to arrange fixtures. Scores that are overwhelmingly in favour of one team over the other is not useful to the players, teams, or coaches involved. Nor is it interesting for fans and spectators to see what fundamentally amounts to a dead rubber. Games should be between teams that are close enough to challenge each other and for the under dogs to potentially cause an upset. The size of the event and qualification process should reflect this.
Opportunities should be given for lower ranked sides to develop their abilities, so that they can compete at a higher level in the future. This could be a mix of funding, coaching clinics and lower graded tournaments where players and coaches can gain greater levels of experience. The format of the EuroHockey Championships, I think, works well. The four tiered system allows for a promotion and relegation set up on a two year cycle. This gives lower ranked teams something to strive towards and a chance for silverware. Those players who perform in the lowest division can still have a degree of success at international level and chances to engage with their fans and teams are able to gain sponsorship aligned with their standard.
An Underdog Story
Fans like a surprise. The spectators want to see somebody who can take on the big boys and win. Just like the David and Goliath tale, we enjoy a story that can inspire greatness from those that we least expect it from. Morocco, for example, at this year’s men’s football World Cup, who have defeated former European champions Portugal and former world champions Spain in order to become the first African team to reach the World Cup semi finals. It’s a narrative that will warm the hearts of sports fans across the globe.
The 1988 Winter Olympics threw up a couple of underdog stories that have since been turned into movies. Michael ‘Eddie’ Edwards, was a plasterer from the English spa town of Cheltenham. He came in to snow sports later than most, after being introduced to skiing on a school trip at 13 years of age. He eventually moved across to ski jumping, competing at the 1987 World Championships. Due to the low bar set for qualification, he became the first British athlete to compete at the Winter Olympic ski jumping competition since 1928. Even though he came dead last, in both the 70 metre and 90 metre events, he won the hearts of those watching, earning the nickname Eddie the Eagle. This was also the name of the biopic movie on his life and sporting career.
The Jamaican bobsleigh team also made their debut at the 1988 Calgary Olympic Games. The Caribbean islanders came in as true underdogs, even having to borrow some basic equipment in order to compete. Dudley Stokes and Michael White finished 30th out of 41 competitors in the two man event. In the four man competition, the team which included Stokes and White, as well as Devon Harris and Chris Stokes, crashed on their third run meaning a disqualification. However, the sight of them pushing their sled across the finish line showed grit and determination. Their story was told via the movie Cool Runnings.
Additionally, from the sport of hockey, there has been a couple of great anecdotes that can be added to the fables and folklore of the game. The Chilean women’s hockey team, had a good showing at the 2022 World Cup. They took on the Dutch on their home turf, as well as some other big names, getting to the second round and bringing neutral fans along with them, with their charismatic coach and swash buckling players. They finally placed an honourable 13th place at the tournament. One of their players, Francisca Tala, even proposed to her boyfriend on the side of the pitch, creating a rather memorable moment.
More recently, the Irish team that that got to the final of the Women’s World Cup in 2018, created a brilliant storyline. Coming into the tournament as the second lowest ranked side in the championships, they played above their seeding, getting all the way to the Grande Finale. Their opponents that day, the Dutch, had been refusing to play test matches against them for sometime. The Irish coach, Graham Shaw, joked that they weren’t able to turn them down now. Ireland secured their highest ever tournament position in their hockey programme’s history, much to the delight of Irish fans and the friends and families of the players.
Accessibility for and Engagement with Fans
Prestige is what makes a tournament special. I have a thought that prestige essentially derives from the memories of fans, players and coaches. The media, including journalists and reporters, can help to create, or caption these memories, but it is fundamentally increased by those who are directly involved, either as participants, or as spectators. All things being considered, there are several things that tournament organisers can consider in order to make things easier and more enjoyable for fan groups, spectators and journalists.
Good stadia is essential. Accessibility for those with disabilities should be included for every newly built stadium. As should be food and drink kiosks (which can also be a method of earning money for clubs or federations), hygienic toilets and comfortable seating. Media suites for journalists, such as writers, photographers and videographers, as well as reporters are important for helping to tell the world what is going on at an event. Internet access is useful for getting out scores and results, post match feedback and the ability to tell the stories that come from the competitions. The ability to stream, or televise matches, with at least one commentator allows for those to engage with the event from further afield than those within the local area. Bringing all of the action to as wide an audience as possible is important in order to create interest and increase popularity. An increase in viewership is an important factor is growing sponsorship and other revenue sources.
Fundamentally, the more people at the games throughout any given tournament the better. Having greater numbers of fans inside the stadium, or venue, is what we want. Affordable ticketing is something that many clubs, federations and organising committees don’t necessarily consider. The selling of tickets is an often used method of earning money for whoever is hosting the event. However, it is also important not to price people out of attendance. Once people are through the gates money can be earned other ways, for example through food and drink kiosks, as well as replica kit sales.
The greater the number of attendees at a game, the better atmosphere within the stadium will be, thus creating a more enjoyable spectacle. Having a range of prices for tickets could be a way of getting more bums on seats. Additionally, allowing school children, or youth team players in for free can raise the attendance levels quite easily. The Spanish seem to be able to get large numbers of kids into their stadium on a regular basis, with audible benefits being heard during their televised matches. If these young fans enjoy themselves then they will potentially begin a life time of involvement in the sport.
These are only some of the ideas that we can enact in order to create an enjoyable sports tournament. Feel free to get in touch with the Half Court Press via social media with your thoughts on what organising committees can do as well.
