The Effect of UEFA Club Competitions on the Local Hospitality Performance

Abstract

Sports events significantly affect the hosting destination and the interest in its visiting. Previous studies focused mainly on longitudinal events like the Olympic Games and FIFA World Cups, where the single-day events were not investigated. The paper investigates how hosting UEFA competition finals affects the local hospitality industry's performance. The study adopted the benchmarking data from Smith Travel Research (STR) and evaluated the impact on the occupancy and prices of accommodation facilities. The results show a significant pricing effect for the day of the event and the day before the finals. There was increased demand when focusing on the occupancy rate, but not as significant as for the prices. No long-term effect on the hospitality industry was identified, and, in some cases, the negative effect might be perceived after the event's termination. To benefit from the event with significant interest from football fans, hoteliers should increase the sales rates, provide the guests with a broader range of services, and cooperate with the event organisers to increase the total performance.