SPORTS EVENT PLANNING

Kick things off by meeting your instructor, getting the lay of the land, and seeing exactly what’s in store. 

• Meet your instructor
• Course overview

See how the world’s biggest sporting spectacles work, who runs the show, and what makes them a “mega” event in the first place. We’ll break down the scale, the players, and the politics, then pit the Olympics against the World Cup for a side-by-side check.

• Defining “major sporting events”
• Key differentiators: Scale, frequency, complexity
• Key players: Rights-holders, host cities, commercial partners, broadcasters
• Overview of global mega events: Olympics, FIFA World Cup, IAAF
• Case Study: Olympic Games vs. FIFA World Cup: Similarities & differences

Assignment #1: Reflect on governance, strategy, and the role of major organisations within major sporting events.

Explore the overall business behind major events, power players like IOC and FIFA, and high-stakes bidding wars that decide who hosts. We’ll unpack the governance and ethical tightropes, plus hear firsthand what it’s like to navigate this world from the inside.

• Role of rights holders: IOC, FIFA, World Athletics, etc.
• Governance structures: IOC, FIFA, International Federations
• Event awarding process: Bidding, lobbying, selection
• Ethical considerations in bidding
• Case Study: Los Angeles 2028 & Qatar 2022
• Guest Speaker: Navigating international stakeholder politics

Assignment #2: Analyze governance and ethics in event hosting decisions.

See how a mega event is born, built, and remembered: first bid to final legacy. Map out timelines, juggle stakeholders, and figure out when “legacy planning” starts (hint: it’s earlier than you think) before diving into the Paris 2024 Olympics.

• Lifecycle of a major event: Bidding, planning, operations, legacy
• Master planning & project timelines
• Stakeholder involvement at each phase
• Legacy planning: When does it start?
• Overlay: Understanding temporary vs. permanent infrastructure
• Workshop: Reviewing the lifecycle of Paris 2024 Summer Olympic Games

Assignment #3: Create a visual lifecycle timeline of a chosen mega event of your choice.

See how mega events get bankrolled and politically backed. We’ll break down how LOCs team up with city, state, and federal players, explore public vs. private funding models, and dig into real-world wins, flops, and fixes from Barcelona ’92 to Paris 2024.

• Host cities & governments role
• Funding models: Public vs. private
• Traditional & emerging funding models
• Case Studies: Rio 2016, Paris 2024, the FIFA World Cup 2026, Barcelona 1992, London 2012

How do big events make big money? We’ll break down sponsorship deals, media rights, and brand activations so you can see exactly where the revenue flows and how to make it flow your way.

• Sponsorship tiers & categories
• Analyzing the sponsorship tiers & media rights revenue models
• Media rights licensing & the business model
• Activation & rights delivery
• Exploring brand activation strategies & their impact

Look at every moving part of a FIFA Local Organising Committee: team services, stadium ops, ticketing, transport, and security. Map out where your skills fit in this high-stakes machine, so you know exactly which doors to knock on for your future career.

• Overview of all functional areas
• Competition management, team services, refereeing
• Stadium operations, venue management, event services 
• Transport, accommodation, accreditation, security
• Medical services, ticketing, logistics

Examine the side of events that shapes what the world sees and how VIPs see it. Media ops, fan festivals, crisis comms, hospitality: get a front-row look at how marketing, press, and special events all work together to create the ultimate experience.

• Marketing rights delivery, broadcasting & media operations 
• Media relations & communications 
• Fan engagement & experiences 
• Protocol & VIP services
• Hospitality operations, ceremonies & entertainment 

Understand the behind-the-scenes engine that keeps major events running. Learn how strategy, infrastructure, and support services all click together to turn big plans into smooth operations.

• Finance, operational planning, procurement, legal
• HR, tech, IT & telecoms
• Sustainability & human rights
• Infrastructure, overlay, city relations
• Volunteer management

Assignment #4: Select three Functional Areas (FAs) that align with your skills or interests. For each, create a 1-page visual overview showing its responsibilities, required skills, typical roles, and a brief personal reflection on why you chose it.

Learn how to turn a bare venue into a fully functioning event space. We’ll break down real examples, dissect clever overlay solutions, and then you’ll get hands-on designing your own pop-up Fan Festival that could work in the real world.

• Venue types: Competition & non-competition
• Overlay planning
• Temporary vs. permanent builds
• Case Study: FIFA Fan Festival & Live Sites explained
• Workshop: Designing a Fan Festival for a major sporting event in an urban location

See how mega-events hit your screen. Learn how host broadcasters, media zones, and broadcast compounds keep the show running and see how digital trends and second-screen experiences are rewriting the rules.

• Host broadcasters & unilateral broadcasters
• Media zones, mixed zones, broadcast compound
• The evolution of digital & second-screen experiences

Assignment #5: Watch a short clip of a recent mega event and identify visible broadcast or media infrastructure. Explain how they were integrated with the venue and provide one idea for improving or innovating the media experience. 

Explore map journeys, engagement strategies, and see how ceremonies, live sites, and cultural programming make events unforgettable. Learn how big events like FIFA and the Olympics craft moments that connect fans, culture, and brand.

• Fan journey mapping
• Ticketing, hospitality, fan engagement
• Ceremonies, live sites, cultural overlays
• Case Studies: FIFA Women’s World Cup 2023 Fan Festival, FIFA 2026, Paris 2024 Olympics Cultural Overlay

Learn how major events anticipate and respond to crises. Apply real-world frameworks in a live simulation and practice making fast, informed decisions under pressure. See how Tokyo 2020 and Beijing 2022 handled COVID-19, fan violence and safety incidents, and be ready to handle it yourself.

• Risk categories: Health, safety, political, reputational
• Crisis planning frameworks
• Command & control centers
• Case Studies: Tokyo 2020, Beijing 2022, Athens 2004
• Workshop: Applying crisis planning frameworks in a live scenario simulation

Assess how major events leave a mark – or miss the mark. Analyze economic, social, and environmental legacies, compare successes and failures, and learn how to plan events that create real, lasting impact

• Legacy: Economic, social, environmental 
• Legacy planning as a strategy
• White elephants vs. transformative infrastructure
• Case Study: London 2012 vs. Sochi 2014 
• Measuring legacy outcomes

Final Project: Design a full-scale major sporting event from the ground up, choosing between an original concept or a reimagining of an existing one.

Pitch, defend, and showcase your full mega-event concept while proving you can think like a strategist. Explore emerging trends and imagine what the next decade of mega-events could look like.

• Individual presentations: Designing a major sporting event 
• The future of mega-events 
• Industry trends: AI, climate, digital engagement 

Take everything you’ve learned and map it to the world of major sports events. Learn how to stand out to employers, craft a killer CV and portfolio, and turn your experience into opportunities. 

• Getting into the industry
• Hiring & event cycles
• CV, LinkedIn, portfolio 
• Wrap-up and final Q&A