On-Field Sports Spectatorship and Patronage: A Sociological X-Ray of Its Determinants for Effective Sports Management in Developing Countries (Published)
The critical and sociological insight on the on-field sports spectatorship and patronage in any society is important in sport studies especially for effective sports management. The on-field sports spectatorship and patronage can be influenced by diverse societal forces or determinants such as spectator’s level of interest, motivation and involvement in sports; type of sports involved; type/level of sports participants; safety and security in and around sports venues; ticket, ticketing and ticket dynamics for sports; finance and income level of sports consumers; publicity and media coverage of sports; crowd control mechanism at sports venues; social influencers and significant others in sports; means and distance to sports venues; purpose of sports meet; level and type of officials and officiating; composition of spectators or sports crowd; sponsors of sports events; stage of the sports competition; level and quality of sports organization; spectators’ past sports experience; establishing social contacts with sports personalities at sports venues; servicescape and sportscape of the sports facility; location of the sports venue; sports history of players, teams or clubs; sports schedule in terms of day and time; sports violence and hooliganism; intrinsic quest for sports entertainment; weather condition; sports culture of the society, and demographic characteristics of sports consumers. It was suggested among others that Ministry of Sports and sports organizations should boost the sports interest of spectators, motivate and sensitize them on the need for on-field sports spectatorship and to patronize sports. Sports organizers should consider the type of sports programme to package for spectators.
Keywords: Determinants, Patronage, Sports Management, Sports Spectatorship, developing countries