The question of whether mega-sport events, such as the Olympic Games and FIFA World Cups, provide a worthwhile return on investment for host cities and nations has long been debated and is an important question for national and regional policymakers considering bidding to hold such events. This is evidenced in recent media coverage of the rising cost of the Paris 2024 Olympics Games.

While proponents argue that mega-sport events generate positive economic impact, rigorous academic research shows that the costs of hosting often outweigh the economic benefits. As a result, increasing attention has been paid to the non-economic ‘social impacts’ of hosting these events, including the promotion of wellbeing, civic pride, social relationships, and physical activity among local citizens.

The relevance of such social impacts was particularly highlighted during the Tokyo 2020 Olympics and Paralympic Games, held in 2021 behind closed doors due to COVID-19. With restrictions in place on tourism and event attendance, the economic benefits of hosting the Tokyo 2020 Games—if any—were further diminished.

This has underscored the importance of demonstrating the positive social impacts that the event has brought to Tokyo and Japan, which invested billions of pounds from taxpayers’ money in the construction of event venues and planning and operations of the Games.

Tokyo 2020 and Promotion of Attitudes toward Diversity

Against this background, in a recently published study, we examined the social impacts of the Tokyo 2020 Olympics and Paralympic Games, especially in relation to the effects of hosting the Games on residents’ attitudes toward diversity.

Promoting positive attitudes toward people with diverse attributes and backgrounds among the local population, particularly the younger generation, was one of the Tokyo 2020 Games’ intended social impacts, as highlighted by the event’s core concept of ‘Unity in Diversity.’

Diversity promotion has also become a central policy issue for Japan—the country facing population ageing and decline and hence the need to embrace more diverse populations to drive the economic and social development of the nation.

In the study, we analysed survey data on attitudes toward diversity collected from 581 young residents of Tokyo before and after the Tokyo 2020 Olympic and Paralympic Games. A pre-event survey was conducted two weeks before the start of the Olympic Games on 23 July, followed by a post-event survey shortly after the conclusion of the Paralympic Games on 5 September.

By comparing these pre- and post-event survey data, we found that there was only a slight increase in attitudes toward diversity among local young residents after the event, compared to their pre-event levels.

However, our analysis also revealed the ‘conditional’ effects of hosting the Tokyo 2020 Games on the attitudes of local young residents toward diversity: Those who identified more strongly with the Games during the hosting period experienced a greater increase in their attitudes toward diversity. Specifically, as local young residents increased their identification with the Tokyo 2020 Games through their shared experience of event hosting, they became more aware of the Games’ integration of diversity-related values, such as anti-discrimination and equality.

This heightened awareness, in turn, made residents more appreciative of diversity, as evidenced by their enhanced attitudes toward diversity.

Leveraging the Capacity of Mega-Sport Events for Diversity Promotion

Hosting a mega-sport event presents a unique opportunity for host cities and nations to promote positive attitudes toward diversity among their citizens. In this sense, mega-sport events may function as a ‘social intervention’ that changes the attitudes, values, and perceptions of the local population.

However, our findings suggest that to fully leverage this potential, it is essential to intentionally increase residents’ identification with the mega-event and their awareness of how the event embraces diversity-related values.

Our Recommendations for Policymakers and Event Organisers

1. Strengthening identification: Identification refers to a sense of belonging to the mega-event and the community that develops around it. To make residents feel this sense of belonging, it is crucial to provide them with ample opportunities to participate in event-related activities and interact with other residents and visitors. Some ideas to achieve this include:
   1. Providing discount tickets to residents to encourage their event attendance.
   2. Organising a variety of free or affordable social events, such as concerts and public viewings, in connection with the mega-event.
   3. Launching social media campaigns to enable residents to connect and engage with the event even if they cannot physically attend.
   4. Widely recruiting event volunteers from the local population to make the mega-event ‘our’ event as hosted by locals.

2. Mechanisms for maintaining identification: Residents may reduce their identification with the mega-event after its conclusion. Therefore, it is important to establish mechanisms that enable residents to maintain and enhance their sense of identification with the mega-event during the post-event period. Examples include:
   1. Placing the event’s logos throughout the host city, such as on billboards, banners, and public spaces, to reinforce residents’ connection to the event.
   2. Exhibiting photographs and artwork that capture key moments of the event in public venues, including museums and galleries.
   3. Encouraging public figures to reference event-related slogans and themes in their speeches and public communications.
   4. Making event sites and venues accessible to residents after the mega-event, for example by converting them into public spaces, tourist attractions, and recreational sport facilities, to enable residents to continue to connect with the event and reinforce their identification during subsequent visits.

3. Communicating the central role of diversity: For mega-events to positively influence residents’ attitudes toward diversity, residents need to be aware of the close relationship between the events and diversity-related values, such as inclusion, equality, and anti-discrimination. Therefore, it is essential to communicate the importance of these values to residents throughout the event preparation and hosting periods. In addition, such communication efforts should be delivered by individuals, such as event officials, athletes, and volunteers, who embody and live by diversity-related values. This can make the communications more impactful and effective in shaping residents’ attitudes toward diversity.

We hope that the recommendations outlined above serve as a starting point for policymakers and event organisers to create a lasting positive impact on residents’ attitudes toward diversity through a mega-event, and ultimately realise a more inclusive society that embraces people from diverse groups.