Winter Olympics and Sports Marketing

The aim of this special issue of IJSMS is to promote more research in an effort to advance the understanding about the Winter Olympic Games’ bidding, staging, operating, and marketing practices.

Introduction

Since the inaugural Winter Olympic Games were held in Chamonix, France in 1924, it has been a century. Over this period of exactly 100 years, the world has seen tremendous growth in the popularity of winter sport activities, participations, and competitions. Being the largest ice and snow mega-event, the Winter Games’ growing global reach and diverse audience make it an attractive target for multinational corporations and local businesses alike, seeking to boost their brand visibility and consumer engagement (Rutter et al., 2020). However, previous studies on Olympic marketing have mainly focused on the Summer Olympics (e.g., Chalip, 1992; Chanavat & Desbordes, 2014; Zheng et al., 2024); to date, studies on the bidding, staging, and marketing of Winter Olympic Games are rather sporadic (Billings et al., 2019; Park et al., 2020; Quan et al., 2024; Roy & Graeff, 2003). Due to winter sports’ reliance on specific weather conditions and environments, operations and consumptions of the Winter Games can be distinctive (e.g., ticket sales, spectatorship, and equipment rental related to alpine skiing) from the Summer Games. This necessitates further research attention to the characteristics of operation, consumption, and marketing activities associated with the Winter Olympic Games. In particular, the interconnections between the Winter Olympics and climate change also merit increased research attentions (Scott et al., 2023).

The relationships of the Winter Olympic Games with other social institutions and areas, such as culture, education, economy, and environment, are reciprocal; each has influenced one another (Kim et al., 2021; Liu et al., 2017; Müller et al., 2021). With the conclusion of the 2024 Paris Summer Games, the 2026 Milan-Cortina Winter Games will soon be on the agenda. The objective of this International Journal of Sport Marketing and Sponsorship special issue is to stimulate and promote more research investigations in an effort to advance the understanding about the Winter Olympic Games’ bidding, staging, operating, and marketing practices. We encourage the use of diverse theories and methodologies in empirical investigations. Additionally, in an effort to better understand the unique perspectives of the Winter Olympic Games, this special issue particularly welcomes studies that reveal differences between the Winter and Summer Olympic Games.

List of topic areas

We welcome submissions on, but not limited to, the topics such as the following: 

• Factors affecting the success or failure of bidding for hosting the Winter Games
• Logistic considerations when staging and programming of Winter Olympic Games
• Cultural elements incorporated into various facets of event design and operations
• Ticket sales and global promotions
• Sustainability practices at the Winter Olympics
• The ecological consequences and initiatives sparked by the Winter Olympics
• Economic impact of the Winter Olympics
• Resident well-being and the Winter Olympics
• Consumption patterns during the Winter Olympics
• The Winter Olympics mascot merchandising
• The influence of cultural themes on Winter Olympic merchandise design
• Tourism development post-Winter Olympics
• Volunteer experiences at the Winter Olympics
• The Winter Olympics media coverage
• The Winter Olympics and digital engagement
• Effectiveness of targeted advertising campaigns during the Winter Olympics
• The legacy impact of the Winter Olympics on host city brand image
• The long-term usage and sustainability of the Winter Olympic facilities
• Consumer loyalty to the Winter Olympic sponsors and partners
• The Winter Olympics sponsorship activation strategies
• The Winter Olympics and ice and snow economy
• Ice and snow events and sports industry development
• Sustainable development of ice and snow consumption
• The Winter Olympics and sports tourism

Submissions Information

Submissions are made using ScholarOne Manuscripts. Registration and access are available at: https://mc.manuscriptcentral.com/ijsms

Author guidelines must be strictly followed. Please see:  https://www.emeraldgrouppublishing.com/journal/ijsms#jlp_author_guidelines

Authors should select (from the drop-down menu) the special issue title at the appropriate step in the submission process, i.e. in response to “Please select the issue you are submitting to”. 

Submitted articles must not have been previously published, nor should they be under consideration for publication anywhere else, while under review for this journal.

Key deadlines

Opening date for manuscripts submissions: 29 November 2024
Closing date for manuscripts submission: 15 July 2025   
Email for submissions: [email protected]