Economic impact and place marketing evaluation : a case study of the World Snooker Championship

This paper evaluates the effects on Sheffield of hosting the World Snooker Championship. The event has been staged in the city since 1977 and has always been thought to be beneficial. The evaluation undertaken on behalf of Sheffield City Council by SIRC, estimated the economic impact attributable to visitors to Sheffield who were attending the snooker and also the place marketing effects associated with the BBC television coverage of the event. The research employed the UK Sport methodology (designed by SIRC) for evaluating the economic impact of sports events and a standard sponsorship industry technique for analysing the television coverage. Results from 1,767 interviews with people in attendance, revealed that visitors to Sheffield specifically for the World Snooker were responsible for almost £2.3m of additional expenditure in the local economy over the 17 days of the event. In addition, the television exposure from almost 100 hours of coverage would have cost more than £3.2m to purchase in the commercial market place. Sheffield has adopted a strategy to attract sports events in order to help regenerate the city, hence it is interesting to note that an annual event that it has not had to bid for, is more significant in economic impact and public profile terms, than all but two events it has bid successfully for and any other event currently on the Sheffield sporting calendar. Consequently, complacency is cautioned against and recommendations are made relative to cultivating the event in order to maximise the benefits to the city. Finally, reference is made to how governing bodies of sport e.g. World Professional Billiards & Snooker Association (WPBSA) might exploit evaluations (such as this) to maximise the commercial value of their event, by using the potential benefits as an incentive to invite competitive tenders from other cities interested in hosting an event.