Enhancing Sports Marketing through Cultural and Arts Programmes

Enhancing Sport Marketing through Cultural

and Arts Programs: Lessons from

the Sydney 2000 Olympic Arts Festivals

Beatriz GarcíaUniversitat Autònoma de Barcelona

This paper discusses the potential to broaden the marketing appeal of sportevents by associating them with cultural and arts activities. The theory ofpolysemic structures and event augmentation are used to explain the valueof offering cultural and arts extensions to sports programs. The OlympicGames are considered a paradigmatic case that illustrates the possibilitiesbecause arts and culture are compulsory components of the main eventand have traditionally been staged simultaneously with the sports. However,research on past official Olympic cultural programs indicates that there isstill a paucity of marketing and promotional strategies to enhance such acombination. The Sydney 2000 Olympic Arts Festivals are used as a casestudy to identify reasons and circumstances affecting the relationshipbetween cultural and sporting programs. Data collection for this case studyincluded 87 semi-structured interviews with Olympic Arts Festivalorganisers, producers, artists, sponsors and the media. The interview dataare cross-referenced with archival data and a content analysis of newspaperdata on the Olympic Arts Festivals. This study argues that the limited successof joint sports and culture event promotions is mainly due to a lack ofeffective integration mechanisms between sport and cultural programs. Tochange this trend, it is necessary to broaden the ways that the core productof sport events is envisioned. Sport marketers are encouraged to explorethe incorporation of cultural events and activities in order to foster theappeal of sport events to market segments that might not otherwise bereached.

Increasingly, sport events are acknowledged as moments of symbolic significance.The significance is grounded in the high level of social interaction they provide, the

Beatriz García is with the Faculty of Communication Sciences at the Universitat Autònoma deBarcelona; Av. Corts Catalanes 6; 7-4 S. Adrian de Besos; 08930 Barcelona, Spain. E-mail:[email protected]

Sport Management Review, 2001, 4, 193–219© 2001 SMAANZ

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intensely personal identification they generate in their audiences, and the subjectivevaluations to which they are consequently submitted (Holt, 1995; Lever, 1983;Melnick, 1993; Slepicka, 1995; Sloan, 1989). Moragas (1992) concurs, arguing thatsport events are fundamentally cultural performances and, as such, they are anextension of the values, meanings and identities of the social actors involved.

Understanding sport events as moments of symbolic significance that areaffected by cultural contexts and values opens new doors for event marketing. Itsuggests that the appeal of sport events can be enhanced by implementing activitiesthat increase social interaction, personal identification, or subjective valuations. Thispaper argues that arts and cultural programs can play such a role and can be a keyenhancer of the sport event experience. Consequently, it is argued that arts and culturecan play a relevant part in event marketing strategies. The purpose of this paper is toidentify means by which sport marketers can maximise the benefits that culturalprogramming can bring to sport events.

Literature Review

Recent research in sport marketing suggests that it is useful to augment sport eventsby identifying and promoting those features that enable television viewers, spectators,or participants to find personal meanings in their relationship to the events (Chalip,1992; Chalip, Green, & Vander Velden, 2000; Green, 2001). That work questions thevalue of such concepts as “positioning”, “unique message”, and “niche marketing”(Ries & Trout, 1986; Trout, 1996) for event marketing strategies. Chalip (1992) hasbeen explicit in his critique of positioning theory within event promotion by pointingout that it “does not provide a ready means for promotional messages to vary fordifferent market segments” (p. 95). Green (2001) extends that notion by observingthat event augmentation can broaden the range of market segments for whom theevent may be attractive. This line of work suggests that sport marketers can increasethe attention paid to events and the diversity of event audiences by incorporatingnon-sport activities and experiences.

Chalip (1992) proposes the theory of polysemic structures to explain faninterest and motivation to follow sport events. The theory states that audience interestin sport events can be enhanced by designing events and event communications in amanner that generates multiple meanings. Chalip identifies three tools to achievethat end: multiple narratives, embedded genres and layered symbols. He describesthem as follows:

Multiple narratives create varied stories that attract diverse audiences … Embeddedgenres appeal to diverse audiences by serving as parallel and simultaneous invitationsto fascination … Layered symbols promote spectator interest by making ceremoniesand rituals representative of more than a mere game or contest. (p. 90)

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The theory has been applied in a range of contexts, one of the most recent being astudy of television viewing patterns among American adults for the 1994 WinterOlympic Games and the 1996 Summer Olympic Games (Chalip et al., 2000).According to that study, “Sport marketers can enhance the size and commitment ofaudiences for sport events by purposely planning their use of narratives, genres andsymbols … The impact will be amplified if significant narratives are incorporatedinto the festivals and spectacles that are also designed for the event” (p. 39).

Green (2001) corroborates those arguments by identifying the benefits of eventaugmentation strategies in sport marketing, and recognising that sport events havebecome a common tool for local and regional economic development. Consequently,she notes, “Organisers are expected to attract as many visitors as possible in order tomaximise each event’s economic impact [which] has required event organisers tothink beyond the nature and quality of sport provided [and] invent ways to makeevents more appealing to more people” (p. 1). Green goes on to argue that whetherthe objective is to increase the number of spectators or the number participants, a keytactic is to provide a variety of add-on activities and services that will enhance theappeal to particular market segments. She concludes that:

We need to consider more deeply what our core product is when we are promotingan event. A casual examination of event advertising might suggest that fun,excitement, entertainment, challenge, or the sport competition per se are the coreproducts …Yet concepts like “fun” and “excitement” are so global that they havelittle practical utility … What matters are the features and factors from which suchglobal ascriptions derive. (p. 15)

The consideration of factors related to fun and excitement as the core products of asport event corresponds with one of the final suggestions by Chalip et al. (2000).They reflect upon the applicability of polysemic structures, and note that most literatureexamining the influence of narratives, genres and symbols on sport events has beendeveloped by sport sociologists rather than by sport marketers. As Chalip et al. note:

Perhaps one reason is that the sport marketing literature has assumed that theindustry’s core product is sport. In the jargon of marketing … the sport marketingliterature might have confounded the core product with the tangible product.Although sport events, sport personalities and sport merchandise may be theindustry’s most tangible products, the sport industry’s core products may be thenarratives, genres and symbols that its tangible products enable. (p. 55)

This paper argues that the production of cultural programs in a sporting context canassist the development of narratives, genres and symbols in a manner that is consistentwith the methods that Chalip (1992) has recommended for event marketers. Thepaper further argues that cultural progams are useful because they provide the kindsof augmentation to sport events that Green (2001) advocates.

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Contextual Background

In order to examine cultural and arts events as effective marketing tools for sportevents, it is useful to review briefly the evolution of recent arts market initiatives.The arts event market appears to be growing exponentially since those responsiblefor their management – from museums to theatres, music halls to arts foundations –have recognised the value of marketing and communications strategies as means toincrease the appeal of the arts and to attract private funds (Australia Council, 1999;Rose, 1988; Sano, 1996; Satchell, 1994). This growth has been complemented by thedevelopment of numerous festivals, fairs and public displays dedicated to popularisingthe arts and related cultural activities, sometimes in the form of event extensions(Delpy, 1999; Green, 2001; McDonnell, Allen, & O’Toole, 1999; Satchell, 1994).

A key incentive for these developments has been the continuous decline inpublic funds which has caused cultural institutions to seek private investment tosustain their level of activity. Many private corporations have responded by shiftingfrom donations and patronage to sophisticated sponsorship programs and partnerships(Cornwell & Maignan, 1998; Townley & Grayson 1984; Witcher, Craigen, Culligan,& Harvey, 1991). The Telstra Adelaide Festival in Australia provides an instructiveexample. As the name indicates, the festival is officially sponsored by Telstra,Australia’s primary telecommunications provider. The artistic director for the year2000 explained that Telstra has an interest in the Adelaide Festival because it offersthe company many key associations which allow for strong narratives to be used inthe company’s internal, corporate and marketing communications (Archer, 2000).Associations that are beneficial for Telstra include the festival’s ability to contributeto the prestige of Australia, its international prospects, and the emphasis placed oncreative uses of technology. In 2000, this latter aspect took the form of an ambitiousand innovative website hosted and maintained by Telstra. These associations havebeen exploited through advertising media and internal communications among staffand key stakeholders. Telstra’s presence in the festival has also been used to providehospitality for key customers and suppliers.

Despite the numerous successes of arts marketing and the apparent potentialof event extensions to increase public appeal and spectatorship, the benefits of usingarts components to enlarge the appeal of sporting events has not yet been thoughtfullyexplored by marketers. In this context, it is relevant to look at the case of the OlympicGames. The Olympic case is significant because of the remarkable combination ofsport, festival, ritual and ceremony (Chalip, 1992; MacAloon, 1984; Moragas, 1992),and because the event incorporates, as a part of the Olympic Charter regulations, thestaging of artistic and cultural programs.

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Rule 44 of the Olympic Charter states that:

1. The OCOG [Organising Committee for the Olympic Games] must organize aprogramme of cultural events which shall be submitted to the IOC ExecutiveBoard for its prior approval.

2. This programme must serve to promote harmonious relations, mutualunderstanding and friendship among the participants and others attending theOlympic Games.

By-Law to Rule 44:

1. The Cultural Programme must include: 1.1. Cultural events organized in theOlympic Village and symbolizing the universality and the diversity of humanculture; 1.2. Other events with the same purpose held mainly in the host city,with a certain number of seats being reserved free of charge for participantsaccredited by the IOC.

2. The cultural programme must cover at least the entire period during which theOlympic Village is open. (International Olympic Committee, 1999, pp. 68–69)

In principle, the International Olympic Committee (IOC) regulations are a reflectionof the educational and cultural aims of the Olympic Movement – the philosophywhich underpins the staging of the Games (i.e., Olympism). Additionally, it can beargued that these regulations have provided host cities and countries with anopportunity to display their cultural characteristics, and to expand the number anddiversity of local and international participants. Furthermore, the cultural programprovides the Olympic Movement with elements that differentiate the Olympic Gamesfrom other sport events.

The obligation to stage Olympic cultural and arts programs must not beconfused with the staging of Olympic ceremonies and rituals. While the first areopen to the interpretation and preferences of the host city and country, the lattercomprise the key elements of Olympic protocol and their implementation process isdescribed in detail in the Olympic Charter. Olympic rituals and ceremonies includethe torch relay, the protocol sections of the opening and closing ceremonies (paradeof athletes, Olympic flags, Olympic anthem, Olympic oath, official speeches, lightingof the cauldron), and the medal ceremonies. These elements are all carefully supervisedby the IOC, and have changed very slowly over the years.

The cultural programs, on the other hand, have undergone substantial changesince their debut in 1912; their function and nature have never been clearly definedor controlled by the IOC. They were initially conceived as arts competitions, andartists were awarded gold, silver and bronze medals in parallel to athletes. After1948, infrastructural limitations and difficulties with objective judging criteria causedarts competitions to be replaced by arts exhibitions and festivals (Stanton, 2000).This is the form that the official Olympic cultural program maintains at present. The

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timing and length of events and their program content has varied from host city tohost city. In some cities, the cultural program has lasted for the two weekscorresponding to the sporting competition, while in others it has lasted the entire fouryears of the Olympiad1 . The focus of cultural programs has also varied – some havehad a national focus (i.e., domestic art and cultural events), and some have beendirected at international audiences (i.e., including art, cultural products, and performersfrom around the world and/or exporting arts). Finally, the program has had a changingrange of styles and types of cultural and artistic activities – from fine art displays andelite performing arts to community events; from traditional folk events tocontemporary shows. On occasion, the program has also included scientific congressesand fairs.

Interestingly, despite the continuous commitment of the IOC to maintaincultural events as an integral part of the Olympics, Olympic cultural events have notachieved the outstanding international profile enjoyed by the sporting events.Moreover, in contrast with the media appeal of Olympic ceremonies and rituals,Olympic arts programs and festivals are barely present in current media coverage ofthe Olympics, and receive little support (if any) from marketers (Good, 1998, 1999;Stevenson, 1997). Research undertaken throughout 1999 and 2000 – before and duringthe Olympic Games in Sydney – has confirmed these observations (García 2000b).In addition, a comparative analysis with the Atlanta ’96 and Barcelona ’92 Gameshas demonstrated that the promotional difficulties associated with the Sydney CulturalOlympiad have been remarkably similar to the limitations found in prior Olympiads(García, 2000a). Since very little has been done to market the cultural and arts eventsassociated with the Olympic Games, it is not surprising that scant attention has beenpaid to their use in sport event marketing. This provides a relevant basis for reflectingon the constraints that prevent cultural and arts programs from playing a more effectiverole in the marketing of a sport event – a consideration that is particularly informedby Green’s (2001) observations regarding the value of event augmentations.

The Sydney 2000 Olympic cultural program is a particularly instructive casebecause the Sydney Olympics, as a whole, contributed significantly to the developmentof Australia’s image internationally (Brown, 2000; Chalip & Green, 2001). In otherwords, the Sydney Olympics achieved more than attendance and audience interest;the Sydney Olympics served as a vehicle for enhancing the image and attractivenessof Australia in its core trade and tourism markets. If event augmentations do have thepotential to enhance the interest of some market segments, they can also be expectedto enhance the impact that an event has on the image of its host city or country.However, if included arts activities are not well integrated into the sport event’sadministration or marketing, the potential for their impact is diminished.

1 The term “Olympiad” is often misused by journalists and commentators. In Olympic parlance, it is usedto refer not to the Games, but to the four-year period that is opened and celebrated by the Games.

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This study explores the factors that limited the effective integration of theOlympic Arts Festivals into the overall planning, programming, and marketing ofthe 2000 Olympic Games in Sydney. Following a review of research methods, fourevents from the Olympic Arts Festivals are considered with particular reference tothe ways that the marketing and management structures of the Games may havelimited the impact that the arts might otherwise have had on the sport event. Thepaper concludes by considering implications for the more effective utilisation of artsas augmentations to sport events.

Method

Three methods of data collection used in this study facilitated development of an in-depth understanding of the organisation of the cultural program and its relationshipto the Olympic sports events: an analysis of documents from the archives of theSydney Organising Committee for the Olympic Games (SOCOG), semi-structuredinterviews, and a content analysis of four years of press clippings about the Olympiccultural program. Each of these methods was employed concurrently, thus providingtriangulation of the data to highlight the main issues. An inductive content analysishas been deemed useful to derive key central themes of investigation within theresearch process (Henderson, 1991).

The document analysis included internal correspondence, memoranda, reportson the evolution and impacts of the Olympic cultural program, and all promotionalmaterials. Archival records included SOCOG organisational charts, the festivals’financial accounts, key event calendars, and work function descriptions. This inquiryprovided an initial basis for deriving names and potential themes for subsequentinterviews.

Eighty-seven semi-structured interviews were conducted with key informants.Each interviewee was selected for his or her expert knowledge of Olympic culturalprogram preparations or their context of application. The sample included universityscholars studying the cultural aspects of the Games, and directors and assistants directlyinvolved in or affected by Sydney’s Olympic culture project. The latter were managers,producers, sponsors, media representatives and artists working either at SOCOG orat stakeholder organisations. Primarily, perspectives were sought about the benefitsof staging a cultural program within the Olympic Games. Interviewees were asked toexplain their own or their organisation’s relationship to the cultural program and tocontrast this with their relationship to the sports program and the Olympic Gamespreparations in general. The majority of interviews were conducted in the interviewee’swork location, and lasted from 60 to 90 minutes. Where permission was granted(40% of all interviews), interviews were tape-recorded and fully transcribed.

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Otherwise, notes were made during and after the interview. Interviews were cross-referenced with the documents and archival materials from SOCOG. The use ofinterviews with experts provided an understanding of the different perspectives thatOlympic stakeholders held towards the production of arts and cultural events in thecontext of the Games, and the key conditions for the management and promotion ofarts in combination with sports.

Additionally, a content analysis was conducted of Australian press clippingspublished between 1997 and 2000 (inclusive). This information helped to explorethe scope and impact of the cultural program, and provided a clear impression of themedia’s approach to the program. Examination of themes associated with the eventenabled the identification of key narratives, genres and symbols supporting orexpanding the appeal of the Games’ sport competitions.

To ensure access to all national press clippings, an agreement was reachedwith SOCOG’s records service and the cultural program publicity consultants so thatall print material from 1997 to 2000 was included in the analysis. SOCOG hadcontracted Australia Media Monitors, an independent press-clipping agency, whichcompiled and classified Olympic-related articles on a daily basis. The sampling frameincluded 31 newspapers (national, state, regional and local papers and tabloids)throughout Australia. This located 693 articles about Olympic arts programs thatwere published over the four-year period.

Categories for analysis were derived to determine how the press covered eachof the different festivals and the cultural program. This provided an essential basisfor considering opportunities for the cultural program of the Sydney Olympics toenhance the appeal of Olympic sport events – particularly through augmentation ofnarratives, genres and symbols. The press clippings supported an examination of theyearly program’s immediate context, the evolution of their implementation, theircapacity to be associated with Olympic sport or the Games in general, and theirprobable and potential impacts at a national level.

Data AnalysisData were content-analysed and categorised on the basis of their relevance to aspectsof polysemic theory and augmentation strategies. Opinions, words or phrases thatcorroborated or refuted the possibilities for the Sydney Olympic cultural program toenhance the Olympic sport marketing opportunities were included in the analysis.Thus, data were constantly compared and contrasted with theoretical concepts.Commonalities and differences were identified in accord with standard proceduresfor qualitative analysis (Miles & Huberman, 1994).

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Analysis of the Sydney 1997–2000 Olympic Arts Festivals

The cultural program for the Sydney Olympics was titled “Olympic Arts Festivals”(OAF). Following precedents set in Barcelona and Atlanta, it occurred for nearly theentire Olympiad – from September 1997 to the end of the Games in October 2000.At the bid stage in 1993, the length and variety of themes to be covered by the programwere considered a distinguishing feature of Sydney’s candidature and a relevant factorin winning the right to host the Games (McDonald, 1994).

Sydney’s bid documents indicate that the OAF was to be composed of fourfestivals, each covering a different aspect of Australia’s cultural identity – from theAboriginal population to migrant communities – to reflect the country’s diversecharacter (Sydney Bid, 1992). The Sydney bid promises were progressivelytransformed into a series of motifs, objectives and programs for each Olympic ArtsFestival. These are summarised in Table 1.

The program’s emphasis on multiculturalism and, notably, on Australia’sAboriginal heritage was seen as an ideal response to the low awareness but growingcuriosity about Australian culture and ways of life (Hanna, 1999; McGeogh, 1994).This emphasis played an important role in the public relations campaign to promoteSydney’s bid among IOC members and the international media (Hanna, 1999). Thesuccess of these initial strategies in promoting the Games illustrates the value ofgenerating narratives and producing symbols to maximise the impact of the mainevent marketing strategy, and represents an extension of the strategies recommendedby Chalip and his colleagues (Chalip, 1992; Chalip et al., 2000). However, an analysisof the internal budget and structure documents reveals that when implementing theplanned festivals, SOCOG was unable to provide enough funding and, moreimportantly, did not provide the strategic and promotional support necessary to realisethe ambitious cultural bid promises (Sydney Organising Committee for the OlympicGames, 1999a, 1999c). Consequently, the cultural program could not effectivelyleverage polysemic marketing opportunities and was thus less effective than it mightotherwise have been as an event extension.

Reasons for the failure of the OAF to serve as an effective extension to themain sporting program are explored below. The next section examines theprogramming for the OAF and identifies the opportunities and constraints of theprogram format and themes for enhancing the appeal of the main event. The sectionfollowing discusses the festivals’ management structure and networks to explain thelevel of support received by the OAF from key Olympic stakeholders and the abilityof the program to respond to the interests of those stakeholders.

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Olympic Arts Festivals’ ProgrammingOne would expect both temporal and geographic proximity to the sport event toenhance the ability of the cultural program to promote the sport events. In Sydney,the cultural program had only limited proximity to the sports events. The festivalsoccurred over a four-year period; the sporting events lasted less than three weeks.Like the sporting contests, the festivals were staged in Sydney. But only some elementstook place in Sydney, and the majority toured either nationally or internationally.Consequently, the environment in which the events (both cultural and sporting)occurred could affect their implementation. The data presented in this section haveresulted from the analysis of Australian press clippings published between 1997 and2000 (García, 2000b). Content analysis of the clippings suggests that changes withinthe social, economic and political climate in which each festival occurred had a strongeffect on their implementation. This, in turn, affected the degree to which each festivalwas able to link to preparations for the Games and secure public attention. The fourfestivals of the OAF are described below, and are analysed in terms of the opportunitieseach presented and the constraints each faced with respect to promoting the sportingcontests of the Olympic Games.

The Festival of the Dreaming, 1997. For “The Festival of the Dreaming” in1997, the politically charged climate in Australia in relation to the reconciliationprocess with Aboriginal people represented a good promotional opportunity (Dyer,1999). The process had reached a peak in 1996 with the legal acknowledgment ofland rights for indigenous peoples (i.e., the Mabo case – see Hanna, 1999). Thisattracted media coverage and helped to raise private and public funds as well as in-kind support (Eccles, 1997). On this occasion, the impact of the cultural programwas maximised by emphasising its symbolic content and significance in regard toindigenous peoples.

However, the festival failed to establish a clear Olympic affiliation. Contentanalysis of national press clippings about the OAF demonstrated that from thebeginning of the festival in July 1997 and onward, media coverage of the festivalfailed to mention the Olympics (García, 2000b). Although the festival logo and mottowere widely recognised, Olympic imagery was only a marginal aspect of the festival’siconography. Consequently, this festival did little to promote the Games themselves.

A Sea Change, 1998; Reaching the World, 1999. Both middle festivals, “ASea Change” and “Reaching the World” (in 1998 and 1999, respectively), had thepotential to expand the appeal of the Games due to their long exposure and variedlocations. Their year-long format allowed the integration of a wide range of eventswhich were appealing to many different audiences. Furthermore, the festivals providedan opportunity to develop both a national and an international presence for the Games– an element that was fundamental for some Australian regions to feel part of theOlympic experience. The State of Queensland was one region that was particularly

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keen to take part. It “created ambitious projects with tourism and local arts bodiesthat were very successful in the area” (Philips, 2000).

Nevertheless, the promotional capacity of these festivals was constrained bytheir very tight budgets. The festivals each relied on budget of less than A$2 million.This was significantly less than the A$5.5 million budget for the 22-day “Festival ofthe Dreaming”, and far less than the budget of A$28.3 million for the final 75-day“Harbour of Life” festival (Sydney Organising Committee for the Olympic Games,1999c). Consequently, the OAF team was not able to create or produce the activitiesand events that were intended to be part of the official Olympic program throughoutthe two years prior to the Olympic year. Instead, the 1998–1999 media content analysisindicates that most events were made part of existing cultural programs, each with ahistory and purpose of its own. Consequently, these events were not always consistentwith the festivals’ mission statement, and were only marginally related to one anotheror to the festivals’ themes. This led to an inconsistency of subjects and approachesthat, together with the geographic and temporal dispersion of events, prevented theOAF from obtaining consistent coverage and recognition as an Olympic event.

The Harbour of Life, 2000. The last festival, “The Harbour of Life” (in2000) had many potential opportunities to complement Olympic marketing campaigns.First, it was the festival most clearly associated with the Olympics; it opened shortlybefore and continued alongside the sporting competitions. In order to capitalise onthis opportunity, all festival promotional material featured Olympic imagery. To avoidambiguities, all posters and publications, including the festival’s logo, referred to itas the “Olympic Arts Festival” instead of “The Harbour of Life” (its original title inthe bid documents). Furthermore, this festival focused on large-scale events and thepresence of international opera, ballet and music stars, which attracted press andtelevision headlines and offered numerous opportunities for corporate hospitalityamong Olympic sponsors and other special guests. Finally, most venues wereconcentrated in the same area – Sydney Harbour – and most events were held in thesame venue – the iconic Sydney Opera House at the heart of the city.

Initially, although the simultaneous staging of the festival with the sportingevents offered the potential to develop narratives and symbols that would appeal toOlympic visitors and participants, the festival was unable to compete with the visibilityand impact of sport. Arguably, the sporting events were able to generate their ownnarratives and symbols in ways far more effective than the festival. An instructiveexample is found in the role given to Aboriginal runner Cathy Freeman as a symbolof Australian reconciliation. Her win in the 400-metre race became more symbolicallypowerful than any OAF Aboriginal art performances. The stronger ability of sportevents to generate narratives and symbols was, nevertheless, assisted by the existingOlympic structures and networks. Sport received much greater support in terms ofmedia coverage, especially through television (International Olympic Committee,

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2000), in part because the OAF lacked media agreements with Olympic broadcastand press rights holders. Without a strategy to insert arts and cultural images orcomments alongside coverage of the sporting competitions, the festival organisersfound it difficult to contribute to images of the Games. In fact, the limited media wasaccentuated by the themes, while the pricing and location of arts events made themmore expensive than the average cultural offering in Australia. The effect was madestill worse by the fact that the events were concentrated in venues neither related tonor close to the main sporting arenas.

In summary, the analysis of press coverage suggests that the festivals lackedyear-to-year continuity, and were not strongly tied to the Olympic sporting events.Consequently, they could do little to promote the Games. The festivals’ main mission(to showcase a multicultural Australia and to promote reconciliation) was relevant tothe Games experience and could have been used to expand and strengthen Olympicnarratives and symbols. However, this is not possible without a clear, consistent andexplicit association of the OAF with the Olympic Games (which was sorely lackingfor the three initial festivals). The lack of association with the Olympic Games wasexacerbated during the final festival by high ticket prices and poor accessibility. In2000, the decision to concentrate most performances at the Sydney Opera House inthe form of operas, ballet and classical concerts reduced the accessibility andaffordability of the festival for the average Olympic spectator, and distanced the artsfrom the thriving festive atmosphere found on city streets and throughout Olympicprecincts.

It is relevant to note that the festive street atmosphere in Sydney during theGames was part of the LiveSites! program, a free entertainment initiative notassociated with the OAF, which was produced by the Sydney City Council and agovernment organisation acting in parallel to SOCOG, the Olympic CoordinationAuthority (OCA). The LiveSites! consisted of non-stop displays of sports competitionson large screens at key city locations and the simultaneous staging of popular musicconcerts and acrobatics. This initiative was celebrated as the true festival success ofthe city and, despite the fact that it offered no cultural insight into Sydney or Australia,it was mistakenly thought by many to be part of the official cultural program of theGames.

Nevertheless, the LiveSites! program demonstrates one way that arts canbecome a successful event augmentation strategy for the Sydney Games – aninstructive contrast to the OAF. However, the LiveSites! failed to provide consistentnarratives and symbols. For example, LiveSites! activities were not designed to offerany perspective or demonstration of Australian culture, and thus did not showcaseAustralia’s multicultural heritage. It is possible to go beyond mere entertainment toprovide cultural events that offer a relevant story, a strong set of values, a source ofidentification, and, ultimately, a chance for long-term legacies. In the Sydney case, a

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better integration of both programs (i.e., integration of the OAF themes with theLiveSites! activities) could have resulted in a much stronger and more successfulfestival – one which would have been relevant to the themes of the Games whileappealing to the general public.

Enhancing Sport Marketing through Cultural ProgrammingIt was argued at the outset of this paper that the fundamental potential of the OAF layin its potential to enhance audience appeal by augmenting the event (viz., Green,2001) and by generating added narratives, genres and symbols (viz., Chalip, 1992).The foundation for these effects was established in the festivals’ mission statement,which emphasised the role of the OAF in promoting Australian multiculturalism, ingeneral, and reconciliation with Aboriginal people, in particular. The multiculturalemphasis of the festivals provided an ideal basis for generating the kinds ofaugmentations that could appeal to market segments across an array of cultural groups.

During the bid stage and throughout the Olympic ceremonies, the showcasingof Aboriginal performances and the presence of multicultural troupes provided theSydney Games with an aura of differentiation and uniqueness. Tourism bodiesrecognised this as the “key to attract visitors not only at Games time but in the long-term” (White, 2000). Olympic sponsors were keen to exploit the opportunity andundertook special campaigns to maximise associations (Bits, 2000). For example,Swatch unveiled a watch designed by Aboriginal athlete Nova Peris-Kneebone andSamsung dedicated each day of the Olympic Games to a different ethnic group,including presentation of folk performances under the program “Rendezvous @Samsung” at Olympic Park. The OAF offered further insight through its wide visualarts, music, theatre, cinema and dance program. This suggests that the production ofpolysemic structures and thus the opportunity to expand overall Olympic marketingwas present in a wide variety of initiatives beyond the official cultural program.These included public relations and communications campaigns for the Games, theOlympic ceremonies, Olympic rituals such as the torch relay, and various initiativesby Olympic sponsors.

All these activities and showcases produced narratives by presenting storiesor through brief approaches to different Australian and international communities. Awide variety of event genres was undertaken – ranging from purely commercialexercises in the form of advertising to open air activities and sophisticated artsexhibitions. These added an array of symbols through their links to reconciliationbetween Australia’s white and Aboriginal communities. Nevertheless, the officialcultural program offered a stronger platform than did unofficial events for theproduction of genres and symbols. The same can be said when comparing the artsprograms with the ceremonies and public relations for Olympic sport. Although thesport elements of the Olympic Games are given substantial funding and obtain high

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levels of media attention, they are also highly constrained by the formats that arerequired under Olympic rules, which include temporal and spatial limitations, a strongdependence on media interest, and the need to be simultaneously understood byaudiences throughout the world. Consequently, the content and meanings of theseprograms are usually relatively simple and must be presented in universalist terms.

In contrast, a cultural program such as the OAF, taking place over four yearsand having the chance to integrate many formats, can develop more varied initiativeswhich can be adapted to special contexts. Some cultural events can be stagedspecifically for particular market segments. As a result, the arts exhibitions andperformances are not as dependent on the requirements of international media as areOlympic sport events and ceremonies (see MacAloon, 1996). For example, the“Festival of the Dreaming” presented a contemporary perspective on Aboriginalcultures in ways much less superficial than the Olympic opening ceremonies couldpossibly have considered. These included Aboriginal people performing Shakespeareand singing opera and country music, rather than stereotypic presentations ofAboriginal people performing traditional songs and dances. “A Sea Change” reachedremote Australian communities and displayed activities relevant to those areas, thusextending the reach of the Games beyond the Olympic city.

From a marketing perspective, these elements could have been used as a vehiclefor reformulating or adapting messages in a manner designed to target particularnational or international markets. Notably, the festivals taking place during the yearspreceding the Games offered Olympic sponsors the chance to approach Australiancommunities and develop local programs in a period of high expectations. The festivalstaged in the Olympic year offered sponsors potential opportunities for organisingcorporate functions and obtaining a greater return on their Olympic sponsorshipinvestment.

Management of the Olympic Arts FestivalsDespite these examples, analysis of the OAF opportunities and constraints foundthat very few of the potential benefits were realised. To determine why the OAFsfailed to make a major contribution to the marketing and promotions strategy for theGames, it is necessary to understand the position they held in the Olympic host city’spreparations and the interest that stakeholders had in getting involved with the OAF.An understanding of these aspects can help to identify elements to be included,modified, or eliminated when using subsequent cultural programs to market sportevents.

The corporate structures and priorities of SOCOG had a significant influenceon the implementation of the cultural program. It is critical to remember that themain responsibility of an Olympic organising committee is to secure the success of a16-day sport event. Since the Los Angeles Olympic Games in 1984, Olympic

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organising committees have measured success primarily in terms of corporateinvestment and media exposure. The management and promotion of the sportingcompetitions reflect this focus. Olympic ceremonies and rituals, without having lostmuch of their charisma, are well adapted to the demands of the international media(MacAloon, 1996).

In contrast, the role and sense of the Olympic cultural program is still presentedin the idealistic manner that characterised its introduction into the modern OlympicGames. That is, it is presented as a fundamental component of an Olympic philosophy(Olympism) that seeks to foster understanding and peace (International OlympicCommittee, 1999, pp. 68–69), but without any formal consideration of the means toachieve the aims of Olympism. This could explain why, despite the success of culturalinitiatives in other contexts, the Olympic cultural program has not yet been able tomake a significant contribution to the strategic marketing of the Games.

Interviews with marketing managers and assistants from the Sydney OAFdepartment as well as with representatives from SOCOG community relations,sponsors liaison, and media partners departments showed that the promotional andfunding strategies of the organising committee were fully dedicated to supportingthe sporting competitions, often at the expense of the OAF program. Remarkably, noplan was devised for developing joint promotions that maximised synergies betweenOlympic sports and cultural and arts activities. Consequently, Olympic stakeholdersinterested in supporting the sports programs rarely appreciated the potential benefitsof an association with the official cultural program (Sulway, 2000).

SOCOG Corporate Structure and Olympic CommunicationsStrategyA key impediment to leveraging the synergies among the sports, and arts and cultureprograms is found in SOCOG’s departmental structure. SOCOG was divided into sixkey corporate groups: commercial, Games coordination, marketing and image, Gamessupport, Games operations and Games technology (Sydney Organising Committeefor the Olympic Games, 1999a). The OAF program belonged to the marketing andimage group but, curiously, instead of being linked to the marketing and sponsorshipprogram, an affiliate of the same group, it had its own marketing and publicity services.Thus, the OAF promotional strategy was independent of the general marketing andcommunications strategy for the Games. This limited interaction with the sportmarketing programs and resulted in a lack of coordination with the marketing of themost symbolic and recognised Olympic programs – particularly the torch relay andthe opening and closing ceremonies. Consequently, the OAF did not benefit from thenarratives, genres and symbols that these programs produced, nor did these eventsbenefit from the narratives and symbols of the OAF. Arguably, the OAF was not

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managed as an extension of the main event. Rather, it was designed, managed andpromoted as an independent program with an agenda and targets unrelated to thoseof the sports and ceremonial programs.

At first blush, the decision to have an arts festivals marketing and publicityservice working independently from SOCOG’s marketing and communicationprograms may seem logical considering the highly specific needs of arts festivals.However, it marginalised the OAF within the general Olympic communicationprogram which, expectedly, received a higher allocation of resources and was able todevelop community programs with a stronger impact. For example, in 1999 the officialpresentations of the Olympic mascots, the educational program and the torch relayreceived more media attention than did the 1998 and 1999 arts festivals combined.Moreover, as suggested in the opportunities and constraints section, the OAF “look”or design strategy (comprising logos, posters, banners, brochures and each individualfestival’s iconography), followed patterns different from the official 2000 “Gameslook” (Sydney Organising Committee for the Olympic Games, 1999b) program and,except for the final festival, minimised the presence of Olympic references. Further,the SOCOG website relegated the OAF to web pages without direct mentions on thehome page. All this accentuated the dissociation of the OAF from Olympic sportevents, thus illustrating the lack of integration with the organisation’s key programs.

Olympic Broadcasting Rights and Media ProvisionsA further consideration when looking at the Games communication strategy is theregulations and support schemes designed for the mass media – television in particular.Presently, the most significant source of income for the Olympic Movement is thenegotiation of broadcasting rights contracts with major television networksinternationally. Broadcasting networks such as NBC in the United States see theGames as a star of their programming schedule, capable of generating infinite stories,news items and peak advertisement fees from event sponsors. This has translatedinto massive media investment and decisions to broadcast the Olympic Games nearlyfull-time, regardless of where the Games are taking place.

Remarkably, the interest that broadcasters have in Olympic sport has no directeffect on marketing the Olympic cultural programs. As argued by Good (1998), specificclauses to guarantee or promote the coverage of cultural activities associated withthe Games have never been established, so there is almost no Olympic footage ofcultural activities. In Sydney, the design and organisation of official media centresdid not include special references, information displays, or imagery of the officialcultural programs. This was particularly evident at the International BroadcastingCentre (the centre dedicated to all official television rights holders), which wasuniquely dedicated to assisting the coverage of Olympic sport (Panisello, 2000).

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Consequently, none of the Olympic broadcast rights holders incorporated OAFvignettes or images into their Games broadcast.

Beyond SOCOG and its corporate structure, other key stakeholders in theOAF were public bodies (Australian federal, state and local governments), Australiancultural and arts organisations, the mass media, and private corporations (particularlyOlympic sponsors). To understand their reasons for involvement and their level ofsupport, it is useful to explore their interests in, and expectations of the OAF, and thelevel of interaction they were allowed within the established Olympic networkingstructure. Olympic sponsors have a key stake in the marketing and promotion of theGames. As the space limitations of this paper do not allow a detailed review of eachof the stakeholders, the analysis will focus on Olympic sponsors as the keystakeholders.

Involvement of Olympic Sponsors and Private CorporationsOver the past 20 years, private corporations have developed a strong interest in beingassociated with the Olympic Games. This interest has evolved in parallel to theevolution of the highly successful Olympic marketing programs, both worldwide(“The Olympic Partners” or TOP) and nationwide (in Sydney 2000, the “TeamMillennium Partners” or TMP). A fundamental component of the success of Olympicmarketing has been the establishment of an exclusivity principle which allows onlyone company in a product category to be an Olympic sponsor or supporter. Otherunique features are the universal appeal of the Games and Olympic sport, whichmultinational companies have seen as an ideal vehicle for their communications.Brown (2000) notes that the value of Olympic sponsorship has also been defined interms of the “suitability of the ‘fit’ between … organisations and the Olympics”(p. 77). Rozin (1995) quotes Daisy Ottman, AT&T Communications Director for theOlympics, as saying, “The goals of the Olympics – teamwork, innovation, excellence– are the same goals that AT&T tries to emulate and live out”.

Despite the high investment required to be part of the TOP or TMP programs,IOC marketing regulations stipulate that Olympic sponsors are not allowed any signageinside Olympic stadia and arenas. Consequently, in order to leverage theirsponsorships, corporations must invest in specially designed Olympic communicationscampaigns and related promotional activities. A common strategy is to utilise imagesof sports teams or athletes in sponsors’ marketing communications. It is also commonto create easily recognisable Olympic themes within television commercials (Stipp,1998). Interestingly, interviews with Sydney Games stakeholders reveal that mostOlympic sponsors are interested in expanding their promotional programs beyondtheir association with athletes and sporting images. Additionally, sponsors were veryinterested in becoming associated with event extensions (García, 2000b).

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Table 2 displays some of the key cultural and entertainment programs eitherproduced or supported by major TOP and TMP sponsors and corporations providingin-kind support to the Games. A total of 16 programs have been identified, four ofwhich were organised by SOCOG outside the OAF official program. These were theOlympic Youth Camp, the Torch Relay, the Olympic Journey and the NationalEducation Program.

Remarkably, the interest in supporting Olympic entertainment programs wasnot extended to the official cultural program. The following three quotes frominterviews with Olympic sponsors demonstrate how sponsors justified this by claimingthat the OAF was not a cost-effective investment in the Olympic context:

The cultural program is not reflective of the Games experience, which is aboutsport. (Jeffrey, 1999)

[Olympic arts events] have a low appeal and are seen as irrelevant by averageOlympic audiences. (Hammond, 2000)

The OAF does not generate much impact compared to other Olympic-relatedactivities. (Bits, 2000).

These perspectives might be taken as an indication that the OAF failed to meet therequirements that corporations see as fundamental to event augmentation strategies.However, logical analysis shows that the official cultural program has at least asmuch potential to provide marketing opportunities capable of providing leverage asdo the complementary entertainment programs. These sponsors’ perceptions condemnboth the design and management of the OAF. Specifically, the decision to keep theOAF separate from other Olympic programs and the failure to establish effectiveintegration mechanisms limited the potential of the OAF to serve as an effectiveevent extension.

Discussion

This paper argues that cultural and arts programs can be useful tools for the marketingof sport events. The claim begins from the observation that cultural activities aresuitable vehicles to develop polysemic marketing structures and event augmentationstrategies. As argued in the introduction, the usefulness of polysemic structures(Chalip, 1992) and augmentation strategies (Green, 2001) for sport event marketingderives from their ability to broaden the appeal of the sport events by reaching amore varied public, by expanding the marketing context, and by exploiting the multiplemeanings that arise from event extensions.

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Table 2: Olympic Sponsors’ Involvement in Cultural and EntertainmentPrograms During 2000

TOP Sponsors Cultural / Entertainment Description(worldwide) Program

Coca-Cola

McDonald’s

Panasonic

Samsung

UPS

Visa

Swatch

AMP

Holden

Westfield

Westpac

Nike

Coca-Cola Olympic Club Sydney& POWERaDE Training Camp

Olympic Youth Camp

Olympic LiveSites!

World of entertainment at theOlympic Rendezvous @ Samsung

Aqua Spectacular

Olympics of the Imagination artcontest

Olympic LiveSites!

Torch Relay sponsor

Holden Hospitality CommunityProject, concert at the Domain(2000)

The Olympic Journey (1997–1999)Hosting the Kids 2000 OlympicArena

2000 Pacific School GamesWestpac Olympic Youth programNational Education ProgramThe Olympic Journey (1997–1999)

Kids interactive sport parkRadio Free Sydney

300 teenagers from around the world offered theopportunity to experience the Games

400 teenagers from around the world shared twoweeks of cultural exchange and Olympicexcitement in Sydney and Australia

Free entertainment in Sydney city: contribution ofsix giant screens displayed in six popular citylocations to showcase coverage of the Games

Cultural performances by folkloric groupscelebrating diversity, at Samsung tent, OlympicPark

Nightly laser and water show at Darling Harbour

A worldwide art contest for kids 9–13 years oldfrom 25 countries. 36 winners attend the Games

Free entertainment in Sydney city: contribution ofsix countdown clocks, one at every site

Funds and promotion of the relay in Australia

Assistance to the Chinese communityFree, open-air concert by Sydney SymphonyOrchestra

Olympic-related activities, especially for children

Youth-oriented educational Olympic programs

Entertainment park at the Domain and FoxStudios. Underground radio station featuringinterviews with athletes, combined with youth-oriented house, techno, acid jazz and World Beatmusic

TMP Sponsors Cultural / Entertainment Description(national) Program

Sydney Olympic Cultural / Entertainment DescriptionSupporters Program

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In contrast, the Sydney 2000 OAFs reinforce the impression that the potentialof cultural programs has still not been adequately explored by sport marketers (García,2000a). In the Olympic context, the ability of the cultural program to enhance sportspromotions has been constrained by a lack of information among stakeholders, lackof realistic planning by organisers and, most importantly, a lack of effective integrationmechanisms. One might think that the problem lies primarily in the nature of majorsport events, such as the Olympic Games, which allow little room for side events andactivities because funds and media attention are directed to the sporting competitions.However, analysis of the Sydney case supports the claim that polysemic structuresand event augmentation strategies can enhance the appeal of the event as a whole. Anexample of the applicability of polysemic marketing theories (viz., Chalip, 1992;Chalip et al., 2000) within the Sydney Olympic Games is found in the notable impactthat the torch relay and Olympic ceremonies had on the public’s fascination for thesport competitions. These events made an impact by generating multiple narratives(e.g., stories about Australia’s folklore and the contributions of multiculturalcommunities) and symbols (e.g., the notion of reconciliation with Aboriginalcommunities). Additional support which is consistent with Green’s (2001) argumentsfor event augmentations lies in the success of entertainment programs such as theOlympic LiveSites!, which expanded the social dimensions of the Olympic experience.

Given these examples, the inability of Sydney’s cultural program to enlargethe appeal of the sport event suggests that there were significant barriers that preventedthe program from being integrated with Games narratives, genres or symbols. It alsoindicates that there was a strategic failure to promote the program by framing it as anextension of the sporting competitions. Accordingly, the problem seems to beperceptual; event organisers have failed to recognise the potential of arts programsas extensions to sport events. Consequently, cultural events have not been identifiedas a component of the event core product, and have not been included in the events’organisational structures.

In Australia, the aim to promote the diversity of Aboriginal and migrant culturesas part of the Games celebrations had great appeal for the general public. The OAFscould have been an effective vehicle to expand these notions and incorporate them aspart of the festive atmosphere of the Games in Sydney, and as an experience alongsidethe sports competitions. The 1998 festival had the potential to develop a sense ofownership of the Games outside Sydney via its tour throughout Australia. Similarly,the international tour of the 1999 festival could have promoted Australia and builtanticipation for the Games overseas. Had the festivals been better integrated withGames marketing, and more consistently promoted, these opportunities could havebeen of assistance to marketers seeking to build tourism to Australia, to strengthenAustralia’s cultural and sporting exports, and to secure maximum identification byall Australian states and territories with the Games.

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Key Weaknesses of the Sydney Olympic Arts FestivalsThree fundamental weaknesses appear to have been culpable in the lost opportunitiesof the Sydney OAF. These are: (1) a lack of integration mechanisms, (2) an ambiguousrole and function with respect to the overall event, and (3) ineffective programmingelements.

Lack of integration mechanisms. Key barriers to the Sydney arts festivals’potential to augment the Olympic sport experience are found in the corporate structureand the marketing policies of the organising committee for the Games. Arguably, thecommittee’s structure confined the cultural program to a marginal position thatprevented its interaction with core programs and contribution to key events, the sports,and ceremonial programs. The committee’s marketing policies further constrainedthe OAF. These policies were built from official Olympic sponsorship programs andbroadcasting contracts, which are regulated by the IOC but provide no guidelines formaximising benefits to or from cultural events. The constraining effects of a marginalposition and exclusionary marketing policies were accentuated by poor networkingof the OAF with Olympic stakeholders, such as sponsors and media. This led to lowawareness and a lack of understanding of the potential of the OAF to augment theirmarketing programs or Olympic coverage. Moreover, it did not allow the OAF tobuild relationships with key stakeholders, such as the travel providers, media, andsponsors who could promote the role of the arts within the Olympic Games.

Collectively, these constraints indicate that a major limitation for thecontribution of cultural programming to sport events is the lack of integration ofstandard frameworks for sport marketing with those applied to staging and marketingarts events. This reinforces the impression noted in the introduction that sport eventorganisers and marketers are, in many cases, still unaware of (or are unwilling toconsider) the potentials that the arts offer for event marketing.

Ambiguous role and function. The lack of appreciation for the potential ofcultural programs for sport marketing seems to be accentuated in the case of Olympiccultural programs. Since their creation, these programs have not been assigned aclear function or role within the Games. This has resulted in perennial marketingfailures, especially with regard to the awareness of international partners and theinternational audience. A further problem lies in the program’s target market, whichis also unspecified. Frequently, this has led to a contradiction between the festivals’mission and their final design (García, 2000a). In Sydney, the OAF mission statementindicated that the festivals were dedicated to all Olympic participants and spectators.In fact, the mission statement extended the dedication to everyone who shares theOlympic values of peace and mutual understanding. In contrast, the festivals’ designwas focused on elitist showcases appealing mainly to traditional arts audiences. Thus,the festival was isolated from the Olympic celebration by its own exclusivity. Theseproblems resulted in little interest in the OAF by key stakeholders. In fact, as the data

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showed, Olympic sponsors would rather create their own cultural and entertainmentprograms than provide funds to support the official one. Consequently, beyond thelack of integration mechanisms, the ambiguity in the festivals’ role and functionprevented the OAF from being an effective tool to augment the sport event.

Ineffective programming elements. An analysis of the OAF organisationaldesign and programming indicates that, thematically, the festivals were not sufficientlyoriented towards an identification of culture, arts, and Olympic sport. Moreover, interms of format, the festivals were not sufficiently integrated (neither geographicallynor temporally) within the main Olympic events. The decision to implement theOAF over such an extended period of time and in so many different locations madeit difficult for organisers to market consistently and to publicise the OAF – particularlygiven their meagre budget. To maximise their promotional contribution to the Games,their relationship to the Olympic sports experience should have been reinforced fromthe very beginning and, as suggested by Stevenson (1997), the selected events shouldbe linked in some way, perhaps through a unifying mission statement.

Synergies among Art, Sport and CultureAt this point, it is relevant to place the promotional difficulties of the Sydney OAFwithin a wider context: the principle, often suggested in theory (Hanley, 1992; Lowe,1977; Parry, 1989) but scarcely developed in practice, of promoting the synergiesbetween culture, art and sport. Hanley (1992) and Parry (1989) detail the many factorsthat arts and sporting experiences have in common, such as their ability to showcasehuman excellence, their simultaneously pedagogic and entertaining aspects, theirinternational appeal, and the creativity and spirit of self-improvement they imply.These commonalities indicate that effective synergies among culture, arts and sportare feasible; they make a case for event organisers to consider more fully how toleverage the synergy.

In Sydney, the arts festivals would have made a greater contribution to thesporting event had the organisers shown a consistent commitment to leverage thesynergies. The festivals could have been more consistent in exploring sport-relatedthemes, perhaps doing so from the perspective of diverse Australian communities orfrom the perspective of other countries. Also, the eventual exhibitions of artworksinspired by sport could have been given a greater role in the main program. Forexample, the discrete photographic displays of Olympic athletes placed at the entancesto the Olympic stadium could have been accompanied by paintings, a wider array ofphoto formats, or other visual art elements. Furthermore, the branding and aestheticsof the festivals’ printed materials could have been more strongly related to theirOlympic context. Finally, the main art locations and the main sporting locations duringthe Games could have been placed in closer proximity so that spectators attendingone site for a particular sport event could easily attend another for an arts event.

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Future Directions

The concept of Olympic cultural programs needs revisiting to increase their appealfor sport marketers and to leverage opportunities for promotion. The principle ofbreaking barriers and mixing sport, education and cultural experiences has potentiallywide appeal. Evidence is found in the concept of sporting events themselves, whichhave been transformed by television and sponsorship. They have taken on new levelsof “cultural” relevance in their own right – the Olympic Games providing an obviousexample. Acknowledging a more explicit integration of cultural and artisticperspectives with sport is not utopian; it is the logical result of these evolvingtransformations.

Further research is needed to broaden our understandings of the marketingpotential of sport event extensions and the role that arts activities can play withinthem. In order to maximise opportunities for reaching as wide and varied an array ofmarket segments as possible, event marketers may need to rethink their core product.When cultural events are placed within the highly saturated context of commodifiedsport, the arts are too often marginalised. But that is due to organisers’ failure toassign a clear role or function to the arts. By linking the arts to sport, new synergiesare created, and new markets are obtained.

The challenge remains to ensure that cultural and arts programs are designedand promoted to be relevant to the sport event experience. The Sydney case suggeststhat, from a marketing perspective, it is necessary to enlarge or redefine the perceptionsthat organisers have of cultural activities if they are to realise the benefits that the artscan provide. For instance, the success of the LiveSites! program strengthens the notionthat using entertainment as a vehicle for generating a festival atmosphere can be anopportunity to promote cultural activities (and messages) in a popular way.

To achieve this, event organisers will need to consider the multiple narratives,embedded genres and symbols that cultural programs can generate, and determinethe ways these may be integrated with the overall design and marketingcommunications of sport events. Event organisers should study the potential to exploitpolysemic elements in coordination with the main event – that is, developingintegration mechanisms that ensure that the production and impact of generatednarratives are an element of the event augmentation strategies and not an independentor isolated piece. In that sense, the outdated identification of cultural events withelitist connotations of arts performances and fine arts displays needs to be discarded.Instead, a greater emphasis on the entertainment and popular value that arts andculture can have will provide the ideal basis for securing the integration of cultureand sport, and will optimise their synergies.

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Enhancing Sports Marketing through Cultural and Arts Programmes