The socio-cultural impact of the 2010 FIFA World Cup™ on Cape Town residents

Abstract

Socio-cultural impact studies of sporting mega-events are very limited and little literature exists on the intangible effects on the residents of the host nation. Nonetheless, several historical examples, such as the 1995 Rugby World Cup in South Africa and the 2006 FIFA World Cup™ in Germany, exist and have demonstrated that sporting mega-events can fuel social cohesion and contribute to the nation-building process. Owing to the complex history of South Africa, it was difficult for residents and stakeholders to pre-determine whether the 2010 FIFA World Cup™ would foster social identity and cohesion in the country or if it would contribute to the entrenched social cleavages and lead to negative nationalism such as xenophobia. For this purpose and to provide a platform for longitudinal studies, this study investigated socio-cultural impacts of the 2010 FIFA World Cup™ on host residents living in Cape Town and compared the opinions and attitudes of 400 respondents before and after the event using a spatially based stratified random sampling method. In an additional study conducted in Cape Town, 288 South African residents were interviewed during the mega-event, using a purposive sampling method to supplement the findings on the topics of national pride, nation-building and nationalism. Key findings revealed that respondents were very positive about South Africa’s hosting the 2010 FIFA World Cup™ and believed it to be a positive socio-cultural legacy for the country, despite high expectations of socio-cultural benefits and initial concerns and doubts among residents before the event. During the tournament, the respondents also showed high levels of agreement with most statements from Smith’s National Pride Index, indicating a strong connection with their South African identity and high levels of national pride and patriotism. This was further fuelled owing to the heightened sense of euphoria and excitement of hosting this historic mega-event. The study encourages stakeholders to continue with post-event longitudinal research in order to fully understand the changes in the residents’ perceptions and to re-evaluate the long-term socio-cultural legacy impacts on host residents.