The pulling power of sport

The emotional pull of sport is enough to overcome rational financial thinking. This can be deduced from the 'red army' of 30,000 Manchester United fans who have jetted off to Rome in search of victory, despite the economic downturn.

Tom Wenham, director of international sports event management company Sportworks, supports this thinking and recognises the pulling power of sport as a major cultural and economic driver.

Commenting on the financial impact of sporting events he said: "Manchester has just announced its Manchester World Sport 08 series generated £23million of net economic impact as well as attracting 317,000 visitors. This is an incredible figure in isolation, but goes some way to indicate how powerful sport can be if harnessed on a national and international level.

"We managed the Junior and Cadet World Fencing Championships last month in Belfast and by marketing the event in partnership with the Belfast Tourist Board we attracted a wealth of first-time visitors to the city, who enjoyed the sporting experience and took the opportunity to discover the delights of the city at the same time."

London 2012 offers a massive opportunity for the UK to showcase itself on a global scale and to use sport as a magnet for tourism. In Beijing alone, China built or refurbished 4,800 hotels to meet the demands of international visitors to the host Olympic city.

Added Wenham: "The business of sport is not to be underestimated in marketing cities as tourism destinations. Manchester was named the world's top Sport City by SportBusiness ahead of Melbourne, Berlin, Doha, Moscow and New York, which is a major coup in terms of its profile on the global stage and reinforces its credentials as an international host city."