This paper examines whether Belfast, Northern Ireland is a suitable destination for a mega sporting event. Using a SWOT analysis framework, the paper evaluates Belfast's strengths, weaknesses, opportunities, and threats as a host city. It then investigates volunteerism in the area, exploring motivational theory — including Schein's career anchors and Herzberg's motivation theory — to assess the availability and viability of volunteer labor. Additional considerations include volunteer training, health and safety, and the role of UK voluntary organizations. The paper concludes that Belfast is a viable host city, with sufficient population, community spirit, and volunteer resources to support a successful mega sporting event.
Hosting a mega sporting event in Belfast, Northern Ireland is something that would have to be carefully considered. It may or may not work, depending on the type of event and other factors. The best way to determine whether an event of this type would succeed in Belfast involves two avenues: a SWOT analysis of the area as it pertains to a sporting event, and a study of volunteerism in the area in order to determine whether it will be difficult to find enough volunteers to contribute to the event. These volunteers do not necessarily have to be fans of the sport in question, but it would be more likely that they would help out if they had some interest in the particular event.
Overall, an analysis of the available help and the opportunities and threats present in Belfast would be a good way to determine whether a mega sporting event would be a good use of money and time, or whether it might cause organizers to lose out. In order to conduct the SWOT analysis, the researcher must examine the Belfast area as it relates to sports tourism. If this is not done correctly, the assessment of whether the area would do well with that type of event could be highly skewed either in favor of or against such an event.
The volunteerism study will be similar, in that some people who would volunteer for general causes may not be willing to volunteer for a sporting event if sports — or that particular kind of event — does not interest them. Keeping that in mind when studying and planning for volunteers is very important, because the number of available volunteers may be strongly affected depending on the reason for which they are asked to volunteer (Adorno, 2000; Xu & Ngai, 2011). If that is the case, the researcher must reduce the pool of volunteers to only those who are interested in sporting events to have an accurate picture.
Is Belfast a suitable host destination for a mega sporting event? Sporting enthusiasts from all over the world attend these kinds of mega events, so it is very important to determine whether the destination would be suitable for both attendees and the event itself (Gammon & Robinson, 2003; Gibson, 1998; Hall, 1992). To that end, a SWOT analysis — examining strengths, weaknesses, opportunities, and threats — is undertaken here on the basis of whether Belfast is the right type of host destination for a mega event in the sporting world. The goal is not to study the general issues that Belfast faces, but only to examine those that may affect the sporting event and those who attend it.
Any country and city will have strengths and weaknesses when it comes to a mega sporting event. That is especially true if a country has not held such an event before, because adequate planning may be lacking. Sports fans can be particular about what they get for their money, and that is something worth considering when one is attempting to figure out whether a particular area and venue will work (Gammon & Robinson, 2003). Too often, event promoters focus on ticket revenue and fail to realize that is only part of the picture. There are many expenses for which promoters of these kinds of events may not be prepared. Because it is so easy to underestimate the cost of a sporting event, having a thorough analysis can help to avoid potential disasters.
Belfast has many strengths when it comes to hosting a mega sporting event. These include:
Just as there are strengths in Belfast, there are also weaknesses that cannot be ignored when considering the hosting of a sporting event. Some of the main weaknesses include:
Like all cities, Belfast is full of opportunities. Some of the best opportunities associated with a mega sporting event include:
There are threats to the success of a mega sporting event in Belfast, including but not limited to:
Getting people to volunteer for a mega sporting event in Belfast is possible, but it is not safe to assume that there will be plenty of volunteers without closer analysis. How many people in Belfast like sports? How many of them are interested in a particular sport? These are the kinds of questions that must be answered, along with the availability of these people and what they actually have to offer before, during, and after the event. Hundreds — if not thousands — of volunteers will be needed, and all phases of the event will have to be covered. It is vital to discover whether this will be a problem before committing to the event.
Sporting events are generally not viable — and often cannot exist — without a large number of volunteers to help ensure that everything runs smoothly (Gibson, 1998; Hall, 1992). So many people are needed that it would be impossible to pay them all for their time and services. Because of that, large numbers of volunteers are required. Volunteers contribute because they like to help out and because they want to make a contribution (Backer, 1973; Beer & Nohria, 2000). Sometimes they will volunteer for almost anything that helps people or their city. Other times, they will volunteer for things about which they have a passion or a personal connection (Blau, 1993; Tonnessen, 2000). Many people are passionate about sports, but some are very particular about the kinds of sports they will support. Still others are loyal to one kind of sport or one particular team and are not going to volunteer for something in which they do not believe strongly. Determining whether the people of Belfast will volunteer for a mega sporting event — or whether they would not be interested based on the teams, players, or sport involved — is therefore critical. A large pool of potential volunteers can shrink very quickly in such cases, and that is something that must be carefully considered.
"Career anchors and motivational theory applied to volunteers"
"Training costs, support needs, and health safety issues"
"UK voluntary organizations and youth recruitment strategies"
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