The 2018 FIFA Soccer World Cup (SWC) is in full swing, with five African countries participating – and the whole of Africa potentially seeing a tourism spin-off.
Egypt, Morocco, Nigeria, Senegal and Tunisia are representing the continent in the global soccer tournament, and Tim Smith, Managing Partner at HVS Hospitality Services, says that by participating in a global sporting event with such a massive following, each country has a platform to put its best foot forward, and showcase the reasons why they are a world-class travel destination.
“For too long, 24-hour news channels have focused on the negative in Africa, but hopefully football fans celebrating in Dakar, for example, just as they would in London, Berlin or Brazil, will highlight the extraordinary experiences available across the continent. What the tourism industry now needs to do is encourage journalists following the SWC in each of these countries, to go out and experience the countries for themselves, and report on that.”
While the African countries battle it out on the soccer field, they remain in the spotlight of soccer fans across the globe, watching the matches on television, or streaming on the Internet – fans who are a captive audience to destination marketing efforts and media by countries, destinations and attractions that can showcase the best of what Africa has to offer.
John Robbie, well-known sports personality, and member of The Sport Exchange, says there could be a lot more potential “if there was more creative and more united effort to understand [the tourism potential]. In same way as when they have a golf tournament or cricket tournament, they have little inserts. I think there’s a lot more potential, and a lot more could be done. Obviously the host nation will be the one benefitting the most, but I think there possibly could be a [tourism] spin-off”.
