Impacts of Terrorism on Sporting Events

Examining the Impacts of Terrorism on Sporting Events: Focusing on the FIFA World Cup.

Terrorism is now, more than ever, a prevalent subject within media discourse. The impact of threats of terrorism, be they perceived or realised, is one that should not be underestimated. While the threat of terror attacks is one that we see on a regular basis, the fact that large scale events such as the FIFA World Cup draw thousands of spectators to one confined area (i.e. a football stadium, and the location surrounding the stadium) means that terror attacks and the threat thereof should be addressed as part of the risk assessment for the event.

The events industry, focusing particularly on sports tourism, have been affected by the global concern surrounding terrorism. Hinch and Higham (2001) recognise that sport in general, be that on a local or a global level, has a huge influence on the numbers of tourists that are attracted to a particular area. Sport is a massive, multi-billion-pound industry, and the tourism that it encompasses makes a significant contribution to the revenue it creates.

There are a
number of facets to sport tourism that make it what it is. There are three prominent
markers of this particular aspect of tourism, which include outdoor sports,
fitness activities, and major events (Hall, 1992). If we consider one of those
criteria – major events – then this study will focus on the FIFA World Cup, and
will explore how the World Cup has been affected by terrorism.

Since the 2001
terror attacks on the Pentagon and the World Trade Centre, major events have
been directly affected by the threat of terror attacks. Sports tourists no
longer feel as safe as they did travelling to destinations for major sporting
events, as the risk of attack is perceived as being much greater. These fears
are exacerbated by the fact that tourists are in enclosed spaces for the
duration of the sporting event, with means of escape being difficult to
navigate and police in large crowds.

Since the late
1900’s sports tourism has seen a surge in popularity unrivalled by other large
scale events (Standeven and DeKnopp, 1999). Sport tourists are known to spend a
significant amount of their income on travelling to destinations in order to
watch their favourite team or sportsperson perform. We can define sports
tourism as “‘sport-based travel away from the home environment for a limited
time, where sport is characterised by unique rule sets, competition related to
physical prowess, and a playful nature” (Hinch and Higham, 2001, p.56). This
can be directly attributed to the FIFA World Cup, as teams of players will take
part in a match with defined rules, are athletic by their very nature, and if
we break football down to a basic level, the players are playing a game.

So, as discussed
one of the criteria that makes up sports tourism is ‘major events’. This title
can be attributed to the likes of the FIFA World Cup and the Olympics. We can
see how the act of putting on such a large-scale event has benefits for both
the fans of the particular sport in question (in this instance the FIFA World
Cup) and also the country in which the event is to be based. The fans are
afforded the opportunity to witness their favourite sports team in action,
while the revenue produced through their tourism contributes greatly to the
area in which the event is to take place. During the FIFA World Cup that took
place in South Korea in 2002, the then-president of South Korea is quoted as
stating that the event was ‘a chance for us to make the country prosper
diplomatically, economically and culturally, in sectors like tourism and
science’ (McCormack, 2002, p.39), ‘us’ in this instance being South Korea.

As there is a
significant return made when compared to the actual investment involved in the
planning, launching, and running of such an event, many destinations who are
able to host events such as the FIFA World Cup vie for the opportunity to do
so, as they are all too aware of the benefits they will be rewarded with in
exchange for their investment (Kelly, 2000).

Although we have
seen significant growth in terms of sports-related tourism (which may be due to
the advancement of travel networks, and the ability to now travel to events for
a smaller financial outlay), the notion of sports tourism is still a fairly new
construct. With this in mind, consideration by organisers must be made towards
how terrorism can have negative effects on sports tourism. Sport is a global
phenomenon, which means that global incidents, such as acts of terrorism, have
a direct effect on the industry.

Terrorism is a
difficult term to describe. In fact, the US Department of State (2001) has
argued that there is no universally accepted definition of what terrorism
actually is. There are a significant
number of variables that can affect how people perceive an act of terrorism,
and indeed whether they actually see an act as one of terrorism at all. Ganor
(2001) argues that in order for terrorism to be fought back against, then a
specific definition should be in place that sets out exactly what an act of
aggression (or otherwise) should constitute in order for it to be labelled as
‘terrorism’. This inability to agree on what constitutes terrorism has led to
several difficulties. Governments are unable to create laws around terrorism
because they can’t agree on what terrorism is (Whitaker, 2001), and also
opposing terrorism, in certain circumstances, could be construed as an act of
terrorism in of itself.

Freedman (2002)
attempts to remedy the situation of disagreement regarding what is and isn’t
terrorism by stating what those attempting to define it do agree on. These factors include:

• Terrorism is carried out in a purposeful manner
  (i.e. specific targeting).
• Terrorism is inclusive of acts of violence,
  which vary in their extremity.
• Terrorism has some form of political motivation.
• Victims of terror are not ‘pre-selected’ (i.e.
  victims of suicide bombers for example)
• The act of terror is intended to affect people,
  bodies or movements outside of the direct victims of the attack (i.e. coercion
  of a government to act in a certain way as a result of the attack).

Most of the
discourse surrounding violence within the sporting industry has been directed
towards the violent conduct of spectators of a specific sport. Football fans in
particular have found themselves the subject of much conjecture regarding the causes
of sports violence, and this has been the case since the 1960s and 70s.

There has,
however, been an underwhelming degree of investigation into the effect of
terrorism on sports tourism (Atkinson et al, 2000, p.54). Wedermeyer (1999,
p.218) supports this assertion in stating that ‘specialist literature on the
relationship between sport and terrorism is rare’. This is in contradiction to
the fact that major sporting events are in no way insusceptible to terrorist
attacks, a point which is highlighted by the fact that in December 2016, a
series of car bombs was detonated outside the stadium of Turkish football team,
Besiktas, injuring many in the process, the majority of whom were completely
innocent civilians.

Atkinson and
Young (2000, p.54) further their point by saying that although, on the face of
it, sports may not seem to be linked to acts perpetrated by terrorist
organisations, there is no escaping the fact that major events in the sporting
world may become the target for terrorist attack. These acts of terrorism may
not only be directed towards the spectators at a major sporting event, but also
those who partake in the events themselves (i.e. the athletes), or even the
large corporations who have put funds towards sponsorship of the event. They
are, in essence, saying that everyone associated with the event is a potential
target for terrorism. If we consider the FIFA World Cup, then this is quite
obvious a major event, with a huge amount of prestige attached to it. As a
result, it makes sense that we can consider the FIFA World Cup, in the contemporary
climate in particular, to be at risk of a terrorist attack.

We have seen
historical instances of major sporting events attracting the attention of
terrorist groups. Perhaps one that will be forever remembered is the 1972
Olympic Games, which took place in Munich. A militant terrorist organisation
known as ‘Black September’ stormed the grounds of the Olympic residents
accommodation and attacked the Israeli team’s hospitality area. In doing so,
they murdered one Israeli sports coach in cold blood, and took ten hostages.
The attempts to save the hostages failed tremendously, and they all died as a
result of the failed attempt, as did a number of the Palestinian terrorists
involved in the coup, and several police officials.

More recently,
during the Olympic games which took place in Atlanta in 2002, several
individuals died either as a direct result, or indirect result, of a concealed
bomb which was hidden in a backpack in the spectator area of the stadium. Many
were injured in the attack, while one of the spectators died as a result of the
blast.

We have seen how
World Cup Football has contributed to violence in the past, and sometimes on a
serious and larger scale than ‘mere’ hooliganism. In 1969, two countries,
Honduras and El Salvador, ended up declaring war on one another after they came
head-to-head in a pre-tournament qualifying match. Because friction between the
two countries was already high, this translated directly to the football field,
and as a result the spectators clashed violently with eachother. This escalated
and the two countries entered into a war in July of that year.

Whilst this may
not be seen as a direct act of terrorism, it does serve to illustrate how violence
is present in World Cup football, or any kind of football for that matter.
However, this kind of violence can be seen as politically motivated. Two
separate sets of fans are brought together, from separate countries, between
which tensions may be running high. The emotion of the event, and the
patriotism felt for each sets of fans’ own countries, by the fans themselves,
could potentially lead to an act of terrorism taking place.

As mentioned
earlier, sport is a truly global phenomenon. So, it goes without saying that
globalisation will have an effect on sports related-violence. We have seen how
global travel has become much more accessible to those who previously were
unable to make journeys to far-away destinations due to the financial
implications of doing so. However, we briefly touched upon how football
hooliganism has been an issue in sports events since the 70s. Inexpensive
holiday deals, and even travel deals tailored specifically towards the sports
tourist, have been prolific for the past 30 years, and so it makes sense to
make the link between sports tourism and sports violence.

Working class
males have been given access to the deals mentioned above, which means that
they can travel to destinations for a comparatively nominal fee. It shouldn’t
be viewed as entirely coincidental that where these travel opportunities are
made available, and are combined with cheap alcohol, that sports violence
(particularly hooliganism, which is often associated with working class males)
would increase and become more of a threat in the time leading up to a major
sporting event. Taylor (2002, p.27) supports this assertion. He states that
‘For many (especially) ‘working class’ young men, it was football that first
initiated them into ‘foreign’ travel’.

To return to
World Cup Football and acts of terrorism, we saw that there was a great deal of
concern surrounding the safety of spectators and participants of the 2002 South
Korean FIFA World Cup. As stated earlier, this was as a direct result of the
atrocities that took place during the 9/11 terror attacks in America.
Nevertheless, all the authorities involved decided that this major event should
go ahead unhindered. This may well have simply been down to the fact that the
revenue generated by the tournament would have been undeniably beneficial to
South Korea. Indeed, as quoted earlier, the South Korean President, Kim
Dae-Jung, stated himself exactly how beneficial it would be for their country,
bringing in hundreds of thousands of tourists from across the globe.

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