European Planning Studies Vol. 18, No.

3, March 2010

The Development of Sports-City Zones and Their Potential Value as Tourism Resources for Urban Areas
ANDREW SMITH
School of Architecture and the Built Environment, University of Westminster, 35 Marylebone Road, London NW1 5LS, UK

(Received April 2008; accepted December 2008)

ABSTRACT In recent years, several cities have constructed new sports facilities in concentrated areas or supplemented existing facilities to create a themed sport zone. Some have branded these areas as sports cities to give them visibility and coherence. This research assesses the rationale for these projects, in particular, their potential value as new tourist areas for cities. Although the relationship between sport and cities is an established part of urban studies, there is currently little research that explicitly addresses this new phenomenon of themed areas of cities dedicated to sport. To address the lack of previous work, existing literature on comparable manifestations of themed urban areas is used as a conceptual basis for the paper. A comparative analysis is then conducted of four specic schemes: SportCity, Manchester (UK); The International Sports Village, Cardiff (UK); The Aspire Zone, Doha (Qatar) and Dubai Sports City (UAE). These different sports-city zones are compared and evaluated with reference to issues raised in the literature. The paper concludes that, to be successful, sports-city zones need to be planned as such, and not merely employed as convenient brands for existing events facilities.

Introduction In recent years, several cities have clustered new sports facilities in concentrated areas to create a themed sports zone. Some have branded these areas as sports-cities to give them visibility and coherence. The present study explores the characteristics and potential success of such projects. As their contribution to the visitor economy is emphasized heavily in associated rationales, the value of sports cities as tourism resources is the main focus of the analysis. Although analysing the relationship between sport and cities is becoming an established part of urban studies, there is currently very little academic research that explicitly addresses this new phenomenon of themed areas of cities dedicated

Correspondence Address: Andrew Smith, School of Architecture and the Built Environment, University of Westminster, 35 Marylebone Road, London NW1 5LS, UK. Email: smithan@wmin.ac.uk ISSN 0965-4313 Print=ISSN 1469-5944 Online=10=03038526 DOI: 10.1080/09654310903497702 # 2010 Taylor & Francis

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to sport. The present study aims to address this gap in the literature and advance the understanding of the value of clustering sport facilities in a designated zone. The idea of a sports city is a rather abstract concept, but the term has been used with increased frequency in recent years. Usage usually takes one of two forms: designating one zone of a city as a sports city; or branding a whole city as a sports city (Smith, 2005a). This latter, holistic approach is evident in Melbourne, Australia. Francis and Murphy (2005) claim that Melbourne has earned its holistic status as a Sports City by developing facilities such as the Telstra Dome, Tennis Centre, the Melbourne Cricket Ground, Flemington Racecourse and Aquatic Centre. Similarly, in the 1990s, three UK cities: Birmingham, Shefeld and Glasgow won the right to call themselves National Cities of Sport from the national sports council. Smith (2005a) suggests that there are certain problems with such comprehensive branding, most notably the difculties tourists have understanding what a sports city actually is. Therefore, the present study does not focus on these abstract examples of city branding, but instead analyses the potential value of physical sports-city zonesconcentrated sites of sports facilities that are developed as merely one part of a city. The practice of theming certain urban zones is nothing new. But in recent years, this practice has become more common, with cities adopting a wide variety of themed areas, from jazz quarters to technology zones. Creating sports-themed zones in cities has a long history that can be traced back ca 2700 years to Olympia in Ancient Greece. In the nineteenth century, sport venues were clustered in several British cities due to shared former land use and/or ownership (Inglis, 2004). Inglis (2004, p. 22) traces three clusters of sport venues in Manchester which he deems to be Victorian equivalents of sports and leisure zones primarily aimed at local citizens. The revival of the Olympic Gamesand the range of smaller events that it inspiredstimulated the development of more outward looking zones in the twentieth century. In the twenty-rst century, it is Middle Eastern cities that are pioneering a new generation of sports cities aimed at attracting tourists and new residents. Examples exist, or are currently being developed, in Amman (Jordan), Abu-Dhabi, Dubai (both UAE) and Doha (Qatar). These follow more haphazard schemes used by Western cities, where sports-city branding has been used to give coherence to existing sports resources bequeathed by large events. The present study involves a comparative analysis of four different schemes: SportCity, Manchester (UK); The International Sports Village (ISV), Cardiff (UK); The Aspire Zone, Doha (Qatar) and Dubai Sports City (UAE). Manchesters SportCity is complete, as is Dohas equivalent, although both cities need to consider how best to utilize and enhance these sites. Cardiffs ISV and the Dubai Sport City are currently being developed, with both due to open in 2010.1 As these latter sites are merely proposed developments, and because of ongoing development in the other examples, analysis within this paper is focused on the potential value of sports-city zones, rather than any actual impacts they may have had. The aims of the paper are:
. . .

to explore existing manifestations of, and plans for, sports-city zones; to compare specic examples of sports-city zones in different urban contexts; to assess the value of sports-city zones as tourism resources for cities

Initial sections review more general projects and ideas that can help us to understand the emergence of sports-city zones. Forms of urban design that have inuenced these zones

Development of Sports-City Zones 387 are identied, alongside equivalent projects from which inspiration and implications can be drawn. This indirect analysis is necessary because of the lack of research into sports cities themselves. In later sections, the focus switches to the four case studies. These are critically evaluated and compared, before related conclusions are drawn. Existing Manifestations of Themed Urban Zones The idea of segregating different types of land use in cities is not a new idea. The US has long used zoning as part of urban planning procedures, a practice which falls under spatial or land-use planning in many European countries (Hall, 1992). Even without active intervention, cities have always been segregated, with different industries, people and activities congregating in certain parts of the city because of various geographical, social and economic factors. In recent years, there has been an increased attempt to capitalize upon these urban clusters by developing themed quarters of cities (Bell & Jayne, 2004; Montgomery, 2005). This has been particularly evident in the US: Schimmel (2006, p. 161) feels themed cultural landscapes have been the hallmarks of urban design in the USA since the late 1980s, producing a series of packaged landscapes in US downtowns. UK cities have adopted a similar approach, with themed quarters deemed necessary to represent cities as coherent spaces for consumers. For example, some UK cities have instigated cultural quarters to delineate and promote a concentration of cultural attractions. Clustering can also have positive effects for producers, facilitating access to localized knowledge, consumers and skilled labour. This is why Brown et al. (2000) compare contemporary clusters to the industrial district model of the Third Italy, where small- and medium-sized enterprises clustered around complementary skills. The development of science and business parks in the 1980s is seen by Brown et al. (2000) as a contemporary equivalent. Now cities are beginning to consider the value of clusters in city centres and in urban areas requiring transformation. Themed urban quarters are sometimes merely concentrations of activity that have emerged organically. In other cases, they are the outcome of tourism promotion activity designed to give coherence and visibility to unconventional urban districts. Often these labels are fairly tenuous and exist more as branding tools than genuine spatial planning frameworks. Brown et al. (2000) cite jazz quarters or bohemian quarters as examples of this crass tourism labelling. Recently, some cites have deliberately developed certain parts of the city to conform to a certain theme. This provides a third, more manufactured, type of cultural quarter. Interestingly, for the purposes of this paper, these different manifestations of themed quarters can be strongly linked to sport. Several cities have designated certain urban zones as sports cities. Usually, though not exclusively, these are areas which have been used previously as event venues, with the sports-city label used to enhance post-event utilization. However, there are also more comprehensive and planned examples of sports cities which do not merely comprise a collection of event venues, but which incorporate a whole series of sports-related industries, services (retail, accommodation), participatory activities and attractions. The idea of themed zones within urban districts ts neatly with Sorkins theory that the contemporary city can be better understood by acknowledging links to theme parks. Sorkin (1992) not only recognizes the prevalence and importance of theme parks in contemporary cities, but suggests that their model of urbanism is becoming an increasingly important inuence on urban design and management more generally. This can be traced back to

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the Worlds Fairs of the nineteenth century; early versions of theme parks that were often designed and presented as visions of how cities might be planned in the future. There are also strong links between theme parks and urban design in the twentieth century. The designs for DisneyWorld and other major theme parks were heavily inuenced by the garden city concept. Like many theme parks, garden cities were located on the urban perimeter and ordered according to a strict model, where the city radiates out from a central area in thematic efs (Sorkin, 1992). This example further demonstrates that cities and theme parks are related entities. Theories of city design have affected the theme park design and theme park design (and management) is beginning to affect the design of the city. The rise of sports-themed zones can also be understood better by recognizing theme park connections. As well as subtle connections, links are now explicit as some major entertainment companies have begun to develop sport theme parks. Examples include Disneys Wide World of Sportspromoted as a 220 acre world of unparalleled sports excitement (ESPN, 2009). The same company also operates ESPN Zoneshuge themed arcades located in New York, Washington, Baltimore and Chicago which are devoted to sport media consumption (Kozinets et al., 2002). In ESPN Zones, visitors are invited to experience three-dimensional sports viewing within agship branded stores (of the ESPN sports media empire). These themed attractions provide an example of a wider trend whereby brands have tried to establish a physical presence in large cities. The idea is to create an embodied form of retail advertising, where the brand is physically manifested and the experience of it intensied (Kozinets et al., 2002). The other high prole example in the sports sector is operated by Nike, which has opened NikeTowns in various cities across the globe (Smith, 2005b). In these spaces, which are a cross between stores and visitor attractions, sales are deemed secondary to experiencing the brand (Howell, 2005). Some companies have been unable to justify these costly operations despite their supposed branding benets. Several high-prole closures (including Viacom, Coca Cola and Warner Bros) lead Kozinets et al. (2002) to their conclusion that these themed stores need tourist trade in tourist cities to be viable. This reafrms the notion that such stores effectively function as tourist attractions, rather than merely retail outlets. Their relevance to sports cities is two-fold: on a practical level, they illustrate the possibility of sport-themed retail provision; but more importantly, they show how a mixture of participatory activities, physical exhibits and media output can be used to create a sport-themed environment attractive to tourists. Alongside inuences from the theme park and retail sectors, emerging sports cities can also benet from the popularity of conventional sports visitor attractions. If sports cities want to attract visitors other than for specic events or direct participation, then these attractions seem to be a crucial dimension. According to Stevens (2005), the most advanced application of the sports visitor attraction concept is the Sports Hall of Fame. These museums are particularly prevalent in North America, where they are often integrated with other attractions in entertainment districts. Attractions of this kind satisfy the strong demand for nostalgia among sport tourists, something that would otherwise be difcult to achieve in newly developed facilities/districts. Some halls of fame are ofcially endorsed by certain (national or international) sports associations, whereas others exist in an unofcial capacity, including those which celebrate local sporting links. An example of the latter is the San Diego Hall of Champions (Figure 1) which, according to the President of the International Association of Sports Museums and

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Figure 1. The San Diego Hall of Champions Museum, Balboa Park, San Diego, USA

Halls of Fame, is the ultimate among local sports museums (Sampson, 2005). The Hall of Champions is in Balboa Park, an historic expo site which also features a range of other tourist attractions. This is an entertainment district, but not really a sports city as such. Indeed, it is difcult to nd a site where there is a concentration of sports attractions within a dedicated sports zone. London, UK, has several sports museums, but they are dispersed within the suburbs of a large urban area. Perhaps the best example of a concentration of museums dedicated to one sport is in the North West of England. This region has a population of 6.7 million and is approximately 1.4 million hectares in size, but hosts at least ve football museums, including the National Football Museum in Preston. The benets of such agglomeration are presumably the proximity to a concentration of consumer demand and the benets derived from being located in a place which has a strong image as a sporting destination. Despite the increasing prevalence of specialist sports museums, the sports visitor attraction sector is still relatively undeveloped, particularly in Europe. Stevens (2005, p. 214) feels that there is considerable scope to develop and apply techniques, designs and technologies from the wider leisure industry. Principally, this means trying to learn from the more advanced theme park sector by increasing interactivity and enhancing the experiential dimension. This requirement highlights the potential inuence of the

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branded retail zones mentioned previously. But Stevens (2005) also discusses the opportunity for more subtle versions of sports visitor attractions based around existing or new sport stadia. This involves either creating viable destination areas around a major stadium or designing more imaginative stadia which can themselves perform the functions of attractions (Stevens, 2005). For example, Dortmunds enormous Westfalenstadion in Germany includes an array of events facilities, a hospitality area featuring an imitation of a local city square and a renowned museum, all incorporated within the stadiums design (www.borussia-dortmund.com). Some new stadia such as Bolton Wanderers Football Clubs Stadium (UK) even offer hotel accommodation which is fully integrated within the stadium, with views of the pitch from certain rooms. Such views are also offered by demountable cafes, such as those installed at the Estadio Bernabeu, Madrid, that protrude from the stands at times when events are not taking place. The increasing tendency to design stadia as local landmarks or icons also provides evidence of the extension of the modern stadium into the domain of the visitor attraction and ts with the noted turn to a visually seductive tourist culture (Silk & Amis, 2005). We can also look beyond large cities to understand the sports-city phenomenon. Comparable manifestations of sports cities outside large urban zones are tourist resorts that specialize in sports activities. Perhaps the most famous European example is the La Manga Club (Spain), which claims to be one of the worlds nest all-round sports and leisure resorts (Resort Group, 2009). This destination boasts of a large range of facilities including 3 golf courses, a 28-court tennis centre, 8 football pitches and 2 cricket pitches. These features allow La Manga to cater to a wide array of sport tourists, from beginners to professional squads. The success of such resorts has been noted by many established destinations, especially in the Mediterranean region, who are seeking to diversify the products they offer (and the markets they serve). According to Francis and Murphy (2005), active sport tourists are the emerging drivers of sport tourism and are a market deemed to be capable of addressing various destination issuesfrom seasonality problems to image deciencies. Sports such as golf, horse riding and water-based activities have always been an important part of the product for many coastal destinations, but increasingly imaginative strategies are being pursued by destinations who want to attract a wider range of sport tourists. Rather than concentrating on conventional sport tourism, some destinations have begun to offer individuals and teams an opportunity to practise, train and/or compete in a diverse range of sports. For example, in addition to conventional sport tourism, Malta promotes training opportunities at the Malta Football Associations technical complex which incorporates the National Stadium, training grounds and on-site accommodation (Bull & Weed, 1999). Places like this can be interpreted as mini sport cities and could perhaps inuence the design of more signicant sites in more conventional urban locations. Sports-City Zones and Events The concept of a sports city is strongly linked to mega sports events. Ever since the emergence of Worlds Fairs in the nineteenth century, cities have developed collections of event venues in concentrated sites. Unfortunately, as Gold and Gold (2005, p. 5) recognize, festival sites do not easily convert into other uses. The same is true of major sports events, which in the twentieth century began to eclipse Worlds Fairs as the major urban spectacles used by cities to symbolize their importance (Silk & Amis, 2005). Although this symbolic role has existed since ancient times, the use of major sports events to

Development of Sports-City Zones 391 strategically restructure cities did not emerge until the modern era. Both Munoz (2006) and Whitson (2004) cite the Olympic Games in Rome in 1960 as the moment from which major sports events began to be considered as urban development tools. Of particular interest to this study is the 1972 games in Munich, Germany, where the Olympic Village was set in an Olympic Park which was clearly orientated towards urban leisure (Munoz, 2006, p. 179). This appears to be an early example of an event-inspired sports city. Other Olympic host cities, such as Athens (2004), used multiple sites for the games and this meant a coherent Olympic zone never materialized. However, the international olympic committee (IOC) now regards the compactness of the main Olympic site as a key part of the criteria for assessing candidate cities. Therefore, it is likely that we will see more concentrated sports zones in future Olympic host cities. This was borne out by the bidding process for the 2012 Games in which the idea of a compact Olympic city prevailed (Munoz, 2006). Fifty years of rather disappointing outcomes suggest that it is difcult to turn event sites into coherent and functioning zones of cities. This is particularly true when events are used to regenerate browneld sites, or when they are staged in peripheral locations. Although the Sydney Olympic Games of 2000 received deserved plaudits, the peripheral Homebush Bay site where most of the facilities were located has not ourished as an integral urban zone since the games. The main stadium has suffered from the lack of events large enough to justify the use of an 80,000 seat arena, a problem exacerbated by competition from new or redeveloped stadia in other parts of Australia (Searle, 2002). In June 2001, a master plan was published to direct a viable future for this area, which involved plans for a new town centre and adjacent precincts. Interestingly, these plans include a concerted effort to make this new town a functioning events and sports zone, with an adjoining events and showgrounds precinct with a sport participation centre. Although criticized for its commercialized and segregated approach, this seems to be an effort to develop a fully functioning metropolitan zone with a strong sporting theme. This is recognized by Searle who states that the latest masterplan suitably recognizes the synergistic potential of the Olympic venues to generate entertainment and sports-related activity (Searle, 2002, p. 857). However, Searle (2002, p. 857) still feels that Sydney has missed an opportunity to realise the areas unique tourist potential as the site of the year 2000 Olympic Games. Missing opportunities to capitalize upon the tourist potential of Olympic status is not something unique to Sydney. Many host cities have similarly failed to develop imaginative Olympic-themed attractions, exhibitions and markers. Montjuic in Barcelona is a spectacular site, littered with Olympic venues, including the famous diving pool which provided the iconic image of the 1992 Games. But unless tourists are fortunate enough to have timed their visit to coincide with one of the events staged here, they are left rather dissatised when they wander around the Olympic venues, many of which are fenced off. Here, there is plenty of evidence to back up Stevens (2005, p. 215) contention that in general the opportunity physically to link sports stadia with visitor attractions has largely been missed. The rather poor utilization of event venues and the lack of local attractions can often mean that ancillary tourist resources diminish after an event is staged. Newly opened hotels around events sites frequently change hands or even close because of the subsequent failure to attract tourists or the anticipated conference trade (Gold & Gold, 2005). Many events have failed to bequeath permanent attractions or a viable sports-themed area, but events are often responsible for temporary sports-themed zones in cities. For example, at the annual American Football SuperBowl, the host city is required to

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Figure 2. The FanFest in Berlin during the FIFA 2006 Football World Cup

provide 600,000 square feet of space for the NFL Experiencea temporary interactive theme park (Alesia, 2004, cited in Schimmel, 2006). Similarly, at the latest FIFA Football World Cup held in Germany in 2006, each of the host cities also staged a FanFest where football fans could eat, drink, watch the matches on large screens, as well as experience a number of interactive football games and promotions. The largest and most iconic of these was located by the Brandenburg Gate in Berlin (Figure 2). This area effectively became a sports city for the duration of the event. Sport exhibitions are also an increasingly common feature of contemporary cities. Prior to the Olympic Games in 1992, Barcelona staged a Planeta Esport exhibition which attracted 250,000 visitors between May and July 1989 (Gold & Gold, 2005). This exhibition included innovative audio-visual presentations, sports demonstrations and interactive displays. These examples demonstrate that temporary sports cities are a feature of many cities that stage major sports events, even if successful permanent examples remain rare. Sports-City Zones as Anchors for Urban Redevelopment There are other examples of cities that have permanent sports zones, even though they have not staged a sports mega-event. Indianapolis has developed a strategy that perhaps has more in common with the cultural quarters approach than with event sites. This US city developed new facilities in combination with a concerted attempt to attract and host sport industries and federations. This meant there was a production orientation to Indianapoliss strategy with the realization that to be a sports hub, it needed to attract sports producers and administrators, as well as spectators (Rosentraub, 2003). Rather than focusing exclusively on tourists, Indianapolis adopted a visitor frameworkencouraging residents, participants, tourists and those involved in the sports industry to visit the city centre. This was accomplished in a manner in keeping with the idea of a sports city because all the developments took place within two miles of the centre (Rosentraub, 2003). A slightly different approach, also prevalent in US cities, is the use of sports developments in association with entertainment facilities to revitalize downtown areas. Silk and

Development of Sports-City Zones 393 Amis (2005, p. 285) cite Baltimore and Memphis as examples of cities that have created sport-anchored tourist bubbles. In these cities, rather than developing a sports city, sports stadia have been used as key features of plans to extend or establish more general entertainment districts. Silk and Amis (2005) feel that the sports facilities have replaced festival marketplaces as the key anchors of these downtown re-development schemes. In Memphis, there is now a 28 block, clearly delineated sports and entertainment district which is promoted using the slogan; come downtown and play (Silk & Amis, 2005, p. 289). Creating these new downtown sport-anchored districts is linked to the US trend for retro-style sports facilities. Downtown sports stadia are regarded as more traditional than their suburban equivalents, and cities such as Baltimore have capitalized upon this nostalgia by building more central facilities and by incorporating a heritage dimension within the stadiums design. This trend has allowed stadia to be utilized as tourism attractions and has slowed down the ight of stadia to the suburbs. Newsome and Comer (2005) suggest that the demand for downtown sites is also explained by team owners desire for increased revenues and the recent tendency for franchises to move to smaller cities which have less problematic and more accessible downtowns. A more imaginative approach to sports-city development is to concentrate on sports participation by amateur residents and visitors rather than simply building elite venues. Weiner (2000, p. 461) feels that the large amount of public investment in urban sport means that each new facility should be used as a community centre, a local institution, not a monument to rich-guy sport. An over-emphasis on elite sports is a noted problem in many cities which have developed high-spec sports facilities and then struggled to nd enough elite athletes to use them. This is even more controversial when local budgets and facilities have been diminished to free up resources for the construction and maintenance of elite venues. Encouragingly, more cities are now focusing on local participation and amateurism. Indianapolis perhaps pioneered the focus on amateur sports, but there have been several other cities which appear to be following their example. For example, Lee (2002) identies Minnesota (USA) and Vancouver (Canada) as cities that have encouraged professional stadia to be used for amateur sports. There is an increasing realization that new elite facilities can be designed to accommodate a range of users. This is evidenced by the legacy loop that allows beginners to use the otherwise treacherous Olympic canoeing facility in Sydney. The private sector is also an important stakeholder in the provision of exible urban sport facilities. The Chelsea Piers Sport and Entertainment Complex in New York (a 30 acre waterfront sports village along the Hudson River) is an example of how sports zones aimed at amateur enthusiasts are increasingly being introduced to central urban locations by private developers (Howell, 2005). Unfortunately, such schemes are also highly exclusive, not because of the level of ability required, but because of the exorbitant fees charged. Potential Problems Associated with Sports Cities Before addressing specic examples of sports-city strategies, it is important to recognize that the existing literature raises certain problems with the idea of creating sportsthemed quarters of cities. Indeed, the very idea of deliberately manufactured quarters is something deemed to be problematic by some commentators. Brown et al.s (2000) research concentrates on the popular music industry, which like sport, is a populist pursuit, allowing governments to escape accusations of elitism. The authors feel that

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public sector intervention to create popular musical quarters is misguided, as it produces rather isolated and staid urban zones. Their research, in Manchester and Shefeld, UK, found that government-led quarters are too heavily focused on providing themed physical facilities at the expense of developing soft infrastructure such as people, skills, networking and social context. Accordingly, activities which bind an area togethersuch as shopping, wandering, random socializing, lookingwere conspicuously absent (Brown et al., 2000, p. 445). These deciencies were also caused by the lack of retail and residential businesses in the area which severely reduced street level activity and animation (Brown et al., 2000, p. 444). There were also feelings of exclusion from those involved in that sector, but who resided outside these zones. These problems need to be taken into consideration when assessing the potential value of sports-themed zones. There is also a noted tendency for themed zones to become physically isolated and overly regulated. This means that these areas, like the theme parks that may have inspired them, exist as rather segregated, sanitized and surreal places, surrounded by an undisciplined periphery (Sorkin, 1992, p. 224). This latter concern reects the experience of the worlds rst mega-theme parkDisneyland, Californiawhich was soon surrounded by an unregulated mass of hotels and low-grade commerce once the park became successful. Themed zonal development means that spaces in-between zones may be largely forgotten, resulting in the dystopian urbanism that can be seen in some US cities. Theming parts of cities is also deemed to be a threat to diversity, as unconventional, incoherent and undesirable aspects are ignored or quietly removed. Schimmel (2006) suggests that the detachment of sport and entertainment zones became apparent to a global audience when Hurricane Katrina forced thousands of New Orleans citizens to penetrate the citys sport-anchored tourist bubble for the rst time to seek shelter in the SuperDome. Accordingly, accounts such as those by Sorkin (1992) present themed spaces as isolated, fake spaces which are detached from real places. Silk and Amis (2005, p. 292) assert that sport-anchored developments are deliberately conceived in this mannerto present a city zone as a safe, sanitized, consumption-orientated space, and one which may include sporting forms that often have little or no connection to the city (p. 294). Therefore, there seems a strong likelihood that developing sports-city zones may produce articial places which are isolated from the rest of an urban area. However, Edensor and Kothari (2004) believe that accounts regarding the dangers of theming are exaggerated. With reference to themed tourist resorts, Edensor and Kothari (2004, p. 204) suggest that themed and enclavic resorts are not non-places, but like all other places are constituted out of the ceaseless ows that centre upon and ow through them. Howell (2005) also offers a spirited defence of recent attempts to theme parts of cities using sport. Howell sees these efforts as part of a wider project to create value-added experiences, which advance greatly previous efforts to simply build tourists attractions or sports stadia. Howell (2005, p. 66) suggests that it is tempting to denigrate efforts to develop a new generation of sporting spaces as nothing but an overly themed and manufactured process, but suggests that they can also be regarded more optimistically as examples of spontaneous and innovative entrepreneurialism. Introduction to the Case Studies The preceding sections have assessed key inuences on existing sports cities, highlighted potential opportunities for new types of sports-themed development and acknowledged

Development of Sports-City Zones 395 potential problems with sports-themed city zones. The intention in subsequent sections is to introduce and compare four examples of sports-city zones in Cardiff, Manchester, Doha and Dubai. These examples have been chosen because they are comparatively rare examples of large sites designed and branded as sports cities. They have also been selected because they are at different stages of their development. Two already operate (Doha, Manchester), while the remaining two (Cardiff, Dubai) are due to open in 2010. The case studies are clearly drawn from two very different regions. Two are in post-industrial parts of the UK, where sports-city zones are being used to regenerate disused land and to re-orientate urban economies towards leisure and tourism sectors. The remaining two examples are located in Middle Eastern cities. These sites are both part of large urban development projects that aim to satisfy ambitious targets to attract tourists and afuent new residents. Apart from some similarities in the rationale for these projectsall appear to be parts of plans for post-industrial futuresit is difcult to justify comparisons between UK cities and emerging urban areas in the Middle East. However, the choice of two cases from each context does facilitate internal comparisons, even if wider inter-continental comparisons prove tenuous. Cardiff and Manchester are UK cities that have suffered disproportionately from the effects of industrial decline. Since the 1980s, both cities have used sport as an economic development tool. As a result of staging major events, they boast of some of UKs most impressive stadia outside London, notably Cardiffs Millennium Stadium (rebuilt for the 1999 Rugby World Cup) and The City of Manchester Stadium (built as the main venue for the 2002 Commonwealth Games). The cases analysed here are SportCity (Manchester) and the ISV (Cardiff). SportCity is a newly developed area in East Manchester that incorporates the core venues used to stage the 2002 Commonwealth Games. This site, located in a deprived part of the city, contains a large football stadium, a cycling velodrome, a regional athletics venue as well as numerous smaller facilities including a tennis centre and eld hockey pitches (Table 1). Like SportCity, Cardiffs ISV will be located in a policy thick area that has been the subject of much regeneration assistance over the past 10 years. The project is planned for a man-made peninsular which is surrounded by a fresh-water lake formed by the construction of the Cardiff Bay Barrage. The project aims to provide a wide range of sporting facilities (Table 1), but is centred on a new 50 m swimming pool, which will replace the city centre pool that was closed to allow the redevelopment of the Millennium Stadium. The Middle Eastern cases analysed here are The Aspire Zone, Doha (Qatar) and Sports City, Dubai (UAE). Doha and Dubai (in particular) are cities undergoing massive changes at the present time. Both are investing in place marketing and tourism functions as part of efforts to lessen their reliance on lucrativebut niteoil resources. Both the case study sites analysed here are proposed as future Olympic venues, although Doha was recently disappointed by its failure to make a shortlist of candidates for the 2016 Games. The Aspire Zone, Doha was adapted from a previous Sport City to stage the largest ever Asian Games in 2006. It includes the Khalifa stadium, Aspire Indoor Hall, Hamad Aquatic Centre, a Sports Hospital and other associated facilities (Table 1). The site was renamed the Aspire Zone to reect ambitions to produce the athletes of the future. In Dubais Sport City plans exist to build an Olympic-style collection of venues and facilities. A series of new sports schools are also plannedeach associated with an international sports brand. There will be a Butch Harmon golf school, a David Lloyd tennis academy and a Manchester United football academy. The International Cricket Council also intends to open its rst global academy on the site (Table 1).

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Table 1. A comparison of key aspects of the four sports-city zones

SportCity Manchester Site Proximity to city centre (approximately) Overall aims Browneld site in deindustrialized urban area 5 km To establish SportCity as a world-class sporting and entertainment destination To provide a range of top quality sports and leisure facilities which are widely accessible to the people of East Manchester (Manchester City Council) 0.6 km2 SportCity Hotel one mile from site Plans for 750 new homes and a ve star hotel Main site for 2002 Commonwealth Games Cardiffs ISV A derelict and contaminated peninsular area 6 km A landmark sports tourism destination for national and international events (Collins & Flynn 2005, p. 284). Dubai Sports City Reclaimed desert. Part of land designated for Dubailand 2 km Ultimately, the aim is to make Dubai Sports City into a destination at which the ultimate sporting lifestyle can be enjoyed (Falaknaz, 2006) The Sports City (aka Aspire Zone), Doha Site of Khalifa Olympic City built in 1976 8 km Aspire Zone is not just a world class sport facility for big tournaments. It is a place for people to have fun whether they want to go for a jog, have a picnic, enjoy a fashion show, get entertained by a musical band or see top class athletes in action (Qatar National Olympic Committee) 2.31 km2 Hotel planned as part of adjacent Le Villagio shopping mall

A. Smith

Size of site (approximately) Accommodation

0.3 km2 Tourist apartments 80 bed budget hotel 4/5 star hotel(s) (500 hotel rooms) 997 residential units Plan to provide training facilities and support for Londons 2012 Olympic Games

4.65 km2 Luxury apartments Hotels

Event links

Possible Olympic Games bid (2020)

Main site for 2006 Asian Games. Related bid for 2016 Olympic Games submitted

Sports facilities (capacity)

City of Manchester Stadium (40,000) National Squash Centre National Cycling Centre Regional Field Hockey Centre Manchester Tennis Centre 200 m indoor athletics track 400 m outdoor athletics track English Institute of Sport sports science and medicine Fitness suite

New 50 m swimming pool Diving, swimming surng and wind surng facilities Indoor skiing, snow boarding and ice sports centre Rock climbing and allaction-based sports Olympic standard canoeing and white-water rafting course Facilities for judo, wrestling, boxing and fencing Facilities for gymnastics Golf driving range

Cricket stadium (20,000) Field Hockey Stadium (5000) Multi-purpose outdoor stadium (30,000) Indoor arena (10,000) 18 hole golf course Manchester United Football Academy Butch Harmon Gold School David Lloyd Tennis Academy ICC Cricket School Multi-functional gymnasium Olympic-size swimming pool Sports rehabilitation centre Major stadiums on one side of the city. Some accommodation around 18 hole golf course and rest concentrated in a man-made canal zone Part of Dubais efforts to generate 15 million international arrivals by 2010

Redeveloped Khalifa Stadium (50,000) Aquatic centre Also includes Aspire, an academy for Sports Excellence: (20 classrooms, 8 full size football pitches, Olympic-sized swimming pool, 200 m athletics track, diving pool, gymnastics hall, multisports hall, table tennis arena and squash courts)

Development of Sports-City Zones 397

Spatial arrangement (see maps)

Rather haphazardcentred on City of Manchester Stadium, but also includes the Velodrome which is actually outside the main zone Initial aim was to attract 4.5 million visitors annually

Four principal zones: sports/entertainment; visitor accommodation/ residential units; commercial retail Aims to act as a centre point for tourism in Cardiff. Plans to be an international destination. Aims to attract 3.5 million visitors annually

Centred around an iconic tower. Stadium and sports facilities located at one end of the site, with shopping facilities at the other Part of $15 billion tourism master plan to attract 1 million international arrivals by 2010

Tourism ambitions

(Continued )

398 A. Smith

Table 1. Continued SportCity Manchester Wider aims Part of project to regenerate de-industrialized East Manchester Cardiffs ISV To attract further development and inward investment Dubai Sports City Part of wider project to turn Dubai into the capital of the Arab world and to offset the impacts of diminishing oil supplies The Sports City (aka Aspire Zone), Doha Aiming to promote Doha and Qatar as a popular venue for international events and to develop the regions tourism industry. Search for national prestige via sport Aspire Tower330 m high landmark. Hyatt Plaza retail zone Signicant part of $2.8 billion budget for the 2006 Asian Games

Extra tourism facilities?

Visitors centre The UKs tallest sculpture, standing at 180 feet $558 million total investment in area. Main stadium site cost approximately $175 million. Plans for $3.7 billion investment in zone in next 15 years Now open, but new development planned

Estimated cost

40,000 square feet of associated sports retail Sports food mall 400 feet viewing tower $1.3 billion

Indoor sports mall. Residential sports academies $2.5 billion

Date of completion

2010

Originally 2010, but now in doubt due to nancial crisis

Open

Development of Sports-City Zones 399 Although there were complex motivations underpinning the construction of the four sports cities, each has been assigned an important tourism development role in its host city. Therefore, the purpose of subsequent analysis is to analyse both the potential of sports cities as stand-alone tourism resources, and their connections to the wider urban tourismscape. Attention to the latter relates to Harrison-Hill and Chalips (2005, p. 316) call for more research that elaborates the way that sport and the destination can complement one another. To allow a succinct evaluation of these projects, key aspects are juxtaposed in Table 1. Comparison is also assisted by the inclusion of rudimentary maps of the sites in Figures 3 6. These maps are not to scale, but help to outline the proposed layout of these sites and the facilities that will be available to sport tourists. In the subsequent analysis, this market is deemed to comprise two key elements; sport tourism and tourism sports. The former refers to sport as a primary motivation to visit a city, with the latter used to indicate where sport is merely a secondary consideration (Robinson & Gammon, 2004). Sport tourism can be further divided into (active and passive) involvement in competitive events; and recreational participation in sport. In a similar manner, tourism sports can be divided into incidental participation in some form of sport or leisure; and tourists who deliberately participate in sport during tourism trips, but only as a secondary reinforcement activity (Robinson & Gammon, 2004). Comparative Analysis of the Four Sports-City Zones There are several similarities between the four schemes. The central aim of each is to attract major events (Table 1), which means that a large proportion of revenues earned will come from conventional sports spectators. More imaginatively, each project includes a commitment to providing training facilities for those taking part in sports activities.2 This is perhaps most comprehensively evident in the Dubai and Doha proposals, where sporting academies are fundamental elements (Figures 1 and 2). However, these facilitiesand those in Manchester (Figure 3)seem more orientated towards the elite sport tourists of the present and future, rather than recreational or incidental users. Only in Cardiff

Figure 3. SportCity, Manchester

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Figure 4. Cardiffs ISV

does there seem to be a genuine commitment to providing sports opportunities for enthusiastic visitors who may have little or no experience of a particular sport. Tourism provision in all the case studies is assisted by plans to provide accommodation (Table 1). This is perhaps most apparent in the Cardiff case (Figure 4), where the accommodation function is targeted at those who wish to stay within the sports-city site, and at tourists who aim to explore the whole city region. In Dubai (Figure 5), accommodation is more orientated towards residential apartments than hotels for tourists. A permanent residential function is also planned for Manchester and Cardiff. As well as the conventional hotel in the adjacent shopping mall, The Aspire Zone, Doha provides accommodation for aspiring athletes (Figure 6). Dubai and Cardiff also make provision for these long-stay sport tourists who may be engaged in serious training. Alongside accommodation provision, secondary services are evident in each example in the form of retail provision. In Cardiff, there are plans for themed retail, including a sports food mall and a large

Figure 5. Dubai Sports City

Development of Sports-City Zones 401

Figure 6. Dohas Aspire Zone

retail space dedicated to sport. This approach is replicated in Dubai, where a large site has been designated to house an indoor sports mall (Figure 5). Perhaps emulating the ESPN Zones and NikeTowns mentioned earlier, both cities aim to provide sports retail experiences. At present, aside from the incongruous development of a giant supermarket, retail is only a minor aspect of the Manchester site. This is in stark contrast to The Sport City, Doha, where main anchor of the site will eventually be the 145,000 m2 Le Villaggio shopping mall (Figure 6). Sports visitor attractions are less evident in the case studies analysed (Table 1). There is already a small football museum and visitor exhibition site at SportCity, Manchester (Figure 3), but museums, halls of fame and innovative sports entertainment facilities are conspicuously absent from the other sports cities.3 Instead, Manchester and Doha have tried to increase the attractiveness of their peripheral sports cities by constructing large sculptures/landmarks. The B of the Bang Sculpture4 (Manchester) and Sport City Tower (Doha) provide attractions for tourists when events are not being staged and may generate iconic images of the sites. Cardiff plans to capitalize on its more spectacular location by including a 400 feet viewing tower offering views across South Wales and the Bristol Channel within its plans (Visit Cardiff, 2009). In contrast to this site augmentation, in Dubais Sport City it is the spectacular stadia design that will provide the iconic landmarks. A nal similarity between the sports-city zones is the strong inuence of bids for sport mega-events (Table 1). As anticipated in previous sections, these sports-themed sites have been instigated by events and event bids. For example, the origins of the Dubai and Manchester sports cities can be traced to a shared desire to host the Olympic Games. When bidding for the 1996 and 2000 Games, Manchester felt that having new facilities in place would assist their chances of success. So the decision was made to continue building venues even when the IOCs decision(s) went against the city. Ultimately, this allowed Manchester to win the right to stage the 2002 Commonwealth Games, for which SportsCity was the main site. Having facilities already in place also seems to be a bidding tactic employed by Dubai, where Sports City proposals are part of efforts to secure the 2020 Olympic Games. Similarly, Cardiffs ISV has Olympic connections, in that a key justication for the development is its potential value as a training base to support the 2012 Games in London. It also aims to capitalize on Golfs Ryder Cup which will be staged

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near Cardiff in 2010. Dohas Aspire Zone was developed as the main site for the 2006 Asian Games and the city submitted an unsuccessful bid for the 2016 Olympic Games. These events, alongside Qatars obsession with developing successful athletes, have dictated design considerations. Key Differences There are also some key differences between the case study examples; including the way branding is used. Whereas the main facilities in Doha and Manchester are dedicated to those responsible for funding the projects (the City of Manchester and Sheikh Hamad Khalifa, respectively), in Dubai, corporate and celebrity branding is used extensively. The involvement of Manchester United, Butch Harmon, Ernie Els and David Lloyd creates an effective alliance between the city and these sports brands. Although such arrangements are notoriously difcult to co-ordinate, they give the facilities greater visibility and credibility. Cardiff appears to be more intent on using theming, rather than branding to give its sports city an attractive identity. As well as being themed as a sports village, the area will be spatially organized according to sub-themes (water, snow and ice). This reafrms the relevance of the preceding discussion that identied the inuence of theme parks in the design of sports-city zones. Perhaps the most notable distinction between the projects is their size (Table 1), and the related implications for the diversity of on-site tourism provision. The latter determines the extent to which sport cities can exist as homogenous entities, rather than zones which rely on the wider urban tourismscape. In keeping with the other leisure-themed zones currently planned for Dubailand, the Dubai Sports City is a massive development that dwarfs other cases (Table 1). Unlike the other examples, this sports city seems large and diverse enough to attract sport tourists to stay within its connes for the majority of their visit. As the promotional materials emphasize, it is designed as a city within a city. This, plus the strong emphasis on golf (Figure 5), means there are strong similarities to La Manga in Spain and other self-contained sport resorts. In the other examples, it is likely that sites would be visited by dedicated participants, or by tourists who are determined to see certain facilities or events. Market research suggests that these consumers represent a signicant part of the short break market, at least in the UK. Of the 1394 adults surveyed by Mintel (2007) who had been on a short break in the UK, 15% cited to watch a sport event as a primary motivation, while a further 10% mentioned participating in a sport event or activity. But, even if such tourists were enticed to sports cities in Cardiff, Manchester or Dohaperhaps even using on-site accommodationthey would need to visit and use other parts of the city to make their stay worthwhile. This means we need to consider how well these sites integrate with, and supplement, the wider urban tourismscape. Sports Cities and the Wider Urban Tourismscape As the sports-city sites in Doha, Cardiff and Manchester are approximately 5 8 km from the centres of these cities (Table 1), tourists will have to make a purposeful visit. Although such distances would not deter dedicated sport tourists (passive and active), they would restrict incidental participation in tourism sports, one of the four acknowledged categories of sport tourism (Robinson & Gammon, 2004). But there remains the potential to attract tourists who participate in sports-related activities as a secondary reinforcement of a

Development of Sports-City Zones 403 more general city trip. This is aided by the seemingly coherent use of sport cities as merely one part of a wider commitment to sport by urban tourism authorities in Doha, Cardiff and Manchester. All three cities push sport as a key dimension in the portfolio of attractions they offer to general urban tourists. Thus, the sports cities are linked to other sports provision and to more general attractions. Manchester publishes a sport guide which is introduced with the promise that its world-class facilities are open to spectators, visitors and sports people (Visit Manchester, 2009). The city aims to attract both sport event tourists (active and passive), interested visitors, but also recreational participants. This is evidenced by provision at SportCity where tourists can hire bikes and receive tuition at the Velodrome at relatively little cost (less than $20). And visits to SportCity may form part of wider sports-motivated visits to Manchester that also include trips to the other main concentration of sports venues (Old Trafford football and cricket stadia and associated museums) and various sport heritage sites (see Inglis, 2004). The same approach also seems to be apparent in Cardiff. Although the ISV is not yet open, tourism authorities in the Welsh capital aim to use it to supplement other sport attractions: This major 700 million project in Cardiff Bay will further enhance Cardiffs reputation as a sporting city (Visit Cardiff, 2009). On Cardiffs ofcial tourism website, sport is very prominent. It commands the rst heading on the homepage, and if accessed this part of the site provides information about both spectator sports and participatory sport. Conventional spectator events dominate, but water sports are also heavily promoted and are cited as examples of sports that can be experienced as participants. Thus, both Cardiff and Manchester appear to be relying on the contention made by Harrison-Hill and Chalip (2005, p. 304) that it is reasonable to suggest that sport acionados might be attracted to an array of complementary sporting experiences. According to these authors, the provision of add-on experiences and integrated marketing communications can attract the sport tourism market not merely to events, but to the destination at other times (Harrison-Hill & Chalip, 2005). While Cardiff is already promoting its yet-to-be-realized ISV, there seems to be a reluctance to promote Dohas Aspire Zone as a stand-alone attraction. This may be because recreational use of facilities is discouraged, as pre-booking and a high level of ability (or promise) appear to be a requirement. Nevertheless, sport in general is promoted as an important part of Dohas tourismscape, with events staged at The Aspire Zone emphasized strongly. On the ofcial Qatar tourism website, sport is the fourth most prominent category after About Qatar, Politics and Business (Qatar Tourism, 2009). Doha itself is billed as a place lled with desert escapades, water sports, shopping indulgence, modern sporting equipments, historical museums, ne-dining, luxurious attractions and other natural attractions (Qatar Tourism, 2009). Thus, as in Cardiff and Manchester, it seems that tourism ofcials believe that sports-city zones can both provide a specialist facility, and a coherent supplement to wider tourist provision. The success of the sports cities as secondary reinforcement attractions logically depends on the wider performance of the city as a tourism destination. In 2006, Manchester attracted 912,000 overseas tourists, while Cardiff attracted 355,000 (Ofce for National Statistics, 2008). This makes Manchester the third most popular UK tourism city after London and Edinburgh, with Cardiff ranked ninth. Therefore, although Manchester and Cardiff are hardly conventional tourism destinations, they are signicant tourist cities. The gures for Doha are not dissimilar: Qatar was visited by 961,518 foreign visitors in 20065 (Qatar

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Statistics Authority, 2007). However, it is important to recognize that even in a year in which Doha staged the Asian Games, 90% of these overseas visitors were on a business trip. Business tourism is an important source of tourism demand for all three cities and, therefore, for secondary sport tourism. This is perhaps something that sport cities need to incorporate into their design, particularly as the market for meetings, incentive travel, conferences and exhibitions continues to grow. In the UK, the visiting friends and relatives market is also potentially important. Despite Manchester and Cardiffs growing popularity among overseas visitors, domestic tourism is likely to provide their main source of revenue for sports cities. Conversely, in Doha (and Dubai), the size and social habits of their respective populations mean that domestic tourism is relatively insignicant.6 While Dubais Sport City may be big enough to be the primary motivation and sole destination for sport tourists, the 6.12 million international arrivals the city received in 2006 suggest a lucrative secondary reinforcement market also exists (Euromonitor, 2007). Links to Preceding Literature To understand these examples of sports cities further, it is also useful to return to some of the ideas discussed previously. For example, it is useful to consider whether sports cities can be aligned to the different types of themed quarter identied. It seems that The Aspire Zone, Doha, and SportCity, Manchester, are ultimately examples of opportunistic tourism branding or theming, rather than deliberately planned attempts to develop new urban quarters dedicated to sport. This is particularly evident as both areas have been indecisive about whether to use the label Sports City or not. The Manchester site has been known by various designations in recent years, including Eastlands and New East Manchester, as well as SportCity. Only in the past 2 years has there been any concerted attempt to coherently market the site as a SportCity to tourists. Doha changed the name of its Sport City to Aspire Zone, perhaps prompted by the impending and imposing presence of Dubai Sports City. Like Homebush Bay, Sydney, both of these examples are peripheral event sites and branding them as sports cities gives them an identity they would otherwise struggle to command. To be fair to Manchester, in recent years municipal authorities have tried to make their site a more coherent sports-themed zone. This has been assisted by the relocation of some sports federations and organizations to SportCity. The recent opening of a visitors centre also demonstrates the renewed commitment to developing a userfriendly site for tourists. However, essentially SportCity remains a peripheral area randomly littered with sports facilities and characterized by a dispiriting milieu. The ISV Cardiff seems to comprise a more innovative and planned attempt to provide a sports-themed zone. This area has more in common with themed urban quarters which have been deliberately planned as concentrations of one particular activity. Cardiffs ISV also has more in common with traditional holiday parks than the other examples. This is conrmed by Collins and Flynns (2005) prediction that this area will become a sort of Centre Parcs. The strong commitment to recreational participation in Cardiff means that there seems to be an effective mix of formal sports and more recreational leisure facilities. The waterfront setting is also more spectacular than the Doha and Manchester sites, which means it may be easier to create an appealing milieu. A potential problem is that, as Cardiff is a less established tourist destination, the ISV will face pressure to stimulate sport tourists to come to Cardiff especially to use the facilities. As with more conventional examples of theme parks, there also remains the danger that

Development of Sports-City Zones 405 this area will be segregated from the rest of the city. Its peninsular location has similarities with the isolation of event sites in Seville (Spain) and Montreal (Canada) which failed to develop into integral urban zones (Gold & Gold, 2005). Although the Dubai Sports City is located in an unremarkable and peripheral location, the massive amount of landscaping planned suggests that this will also become an attractive, if rather contrived, setting for a sports-city zone. This case is neither a collection of existing facilities branded as themed zone (as in Manchester/Doha), nor a planned themed park (as in Cardiff), but a mixed-use urban zone with sport at its heart. Dubai appears to be well aware of this potential advantage. One of the Dubai Sports City directors recently stated that we are well ahead of the rest, we are creating a city within a city, not a stadium with a few towers around it (Falaknaz, 2006, p. 3). Pending the long-term effects of the recent economic crisis, it seems likely that the Dubai Sports City will evolve into a cross between the sport-anchored downtown entertainment districts apparent in the US and isolated sports resorts such as the La Manga Club (Spain). The property-led dimension provides evidence of the former, while the strong commitment to elite sports development and coaching is characteristic of the latter. The problems with themed quarters in general can also give us a better understanding of the likely outcomes of the sports-city zones. Brown et al. (2000) suggest that retail and residential facilities help to avoid the creation of staid, articial zones and there is evidence that each of the cities is aware of this. Manchesters SportCity has the least amount of housing and retail space, but there are now plans to amend this and introduce new homes and shops. In Cardiff, Doha and Dubai, the opposite problem may occur. These areas involve large amounts of commercial retail space and there exists a possibility that these zones become dominated by giant suburban malls, rather than existing as mixed-use urban zones. The other potential problems noted can also be applied to these sites. There is little doubt that the Dubai Sports City will be a highly sanitized, exclusive and segregated zone. Although this cannot be conrmed until the site is operational, the mix of luxury housing and elite sports facilities means it is difcult to see an alternative outcome. According to one of the projects directors, the emphasis on luxury housing proves that lifestyle is at the core of the development, but this lifestyle is likely to be a very transient and privileged one that will not create a diverse and atmospheric city zone. Ultimately, the Dubai Sports City is unlikely to be that different from many existing themed tourist resorts, particularly as its canal-side residences will be characterised by distinct architectural attributes that typify Mediterranean, classic European, Venetian, Arabic and Andalucian style (Falaknaz, 2006, p. 14). The notion that these themed areas may become divorced physically and culturally from their host cities is also a distinct possibility. Although they have ambitious plans for the future, Doha and Dubai have little cultural afliation with sports like cricket, golf and athletics. The developments are mainly aimed at afuent foreigners and may do little to address social cohesion. However, Howells (2005) and Edensor and Kotharis (2004) defence of themed zones can also be applied to sports-city zones. Dubai and Doha are inherently global cities, where Arab cultures have become fused with western and capitalist inuences. In these rapidly expanding cities emerging from the Arabian Desert, it is hard to imagine development that would not seem articial. Skilled entrepreneurialism is needed to ensure these cities remain viable urban areas, and it is too easy to dismiss the emerging sports-city zones as fake, non-places. However, the concern for Dubai and Doha is that they are not the only cities within the region adopting this strategy. Amman, Abu-Dhabi and others are

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developing their own sports cities. Therefore, Howells (2005) assertionthat sportsthemed areas should be considered as examples of spontaneous and innovative entrepreneurialismmay not be applicable. Although it may be unrealistic to expect projects in Doha and Dubai to achieve wider social objectives, the forecasted growth in tourism arrivals, expected property price rises and the seemingly endless supply of funds available should assist their economic viability. This was seemingly conrmed when one of the directors of the Dubai Sports City admitted that I dont expect us to make money from the stadiums (Falaknaz, 2006, p. 3). However, due to the recent economic crisis, expectations about the protability of related property developments may now have to be revised. The sports-city zones in Cardiff and Manchester are likely to be under much greater pressure to succeed nancially. As both are located in peripheral areas of relatively unfashionable destinations, there is a stronger likelihood of failure. The pressure to succeed is heightened because of the disadvantaged communities who live around these sites who require new employment opportunities. If the projects can take off, an added consideration will be whether they can be integrated successfully within local communities, or whether they will simply exist as islands of regeneration. It is important to note that the latter may be inevitable and not necessarily indicative of failure. This issue is raised by Mace et al. (2007) who point out that SportCity, Manchester, is most likely to succeed as a destination rather than a fully integrated part of the community, especially in a mobile society where people are willing and able to travel to high-quality leisure facilities. Conclusions Preceding sections have examined examples of, and proposals for, sports-city zones. Before drawing some tentative conclusions, it is important to acknowledge the limitations of the present study. The analysis here has focused on potential value of sports cities as tourism resources. Conclusions may have been very different had the main criteria of assessment been their role as examples of integrated and sustainable urbanism. Sports-city zones appear to be land hungry, low density, one-dimensional, segregated phenomenacharacteristics normally considered as the antithesis of sustainable urban development (Mace et al., 2007). More focus on residential considerations may have revealed more about these potential problems. In focusing on tourism value, it would also have been preferable to include more specic measures; for example, indications of revenues earned. But this was impossible for sites that have not yet opened and somewhat irrelevant to Qatar and UAE regimes that seem more interested in the symbolic and long-term benets of tourism, than short-term nancial returns. This latter point also emphasizes the vastly different contexts in which these sports cities are emerging. The abundance of nancial and government support in Doha and Dubai is merely one key difference between UK examples and those in the Middle East. Another critical distinction is that for Manchester and Cardiff success means rehabilitating an existing urban landscape, whereas in the Middle East sports cities are merely one part of the rapid development of whole new cities. Nevertheless, there are enough similarities to make comparisons worthwhile. Comparisons are perhaps unavoidable, as in some ways the four examples will be in direct competition, for example, in efforts to secure major sport events. Indeed, one of the most important ndings is that sports-city sites have been principally designed as,

Development of Sports-City Zones 407 and adapted from, event venues. The continued priority given to their role as event sites exposes them to intense global competition even for events of second-order status (Black, 2008). As Sydney has found, if you cannot attract enough large events, it does not matter how good your new facilities are. The strategic location of the Middle East, the related relocation of sport federations and the proactivity of their respective national airlines may allow Doha and Dubai to attract sufcient events. But Cardiff and Manchester face a more uncertain future, especially as they face competition from newer venues being built in London to stage the 2012 Olympic Games. The key aim of the present study was to assess tourism potential of sports-city zones. Although cited as a major objective for all four cases, tourism is only properly integrated into plans for Cardiffs ISV. In Manchester and Doha, wider tourism functions have had to be cultivated in sites, and with facilities, that were not purpose-built. This has to compromise tourism outcomes. That is not to say that these sports cities will not attract specialist tourist segments. But tourism sports markets are less well served. Incidental tourism is unlikely in any of the cases due to their peripheral locationsunless new accommodation and retail provision is successful enough to act as a primary attraction rather than secondary service. The absence of incidental demand and high levels of competition for event tourists means that attracting those for whom sport is a merely secondary motivation to visit a city could be the critical success factor for sports cities. Performance in this market seems to depend on three subsidiary factors. First, the attractiveness of the sports city itself and the availability of a diverse range of sport and non-sport attractions. The presence of social infrastructure and the capacity to develop a genuine sporting place is critically important here. Second, the success of efforts to bundle sports cities with other parts of the urban tourismscape. Again, this includes both sport and non-sport-related attractions. Third, and perhaps most fundamentally, it will depend on the wider success of the tourist cities in which they are located. The importance of integrating sports cities within urban areas, and of bundling them with other sports attractions, perhaps contradicts a central premise of sports citiesthe value of spatial clustering. This is challenged further by recent research into urban tourist experiences in which the importance of diversity, conviviality and landscape texture has been emphasized. There is also a concern that different sports (even different factions within the same sport) are homogenous and, therefore, the individual elements of sports-city zones may not experience the usual benets of agglomeration (such as access to other rms consumers). However, clustering sports attractions together may generate enough critical mass to promote awareness of, and engagement with, urban sports provision among tourists generally. And for dedicated recreational participants, the availability of more than one sporting opportunity may provide extra incentives for primary visitation. Clustering seems less relevant to events tourists (passive and active) and elite participants who are motivated to visit because of one specic facility or event. Yet, it could be argued that clustering may allow these tourists to engage in incidental or secondary consumption of sport attractions to supplement their primary motivation for visiting a sports city. An attractive critical mass of themed attractions may also prompt return visits by such audiences. Therefore, while the co-location of sports attractions on the edge of cities may restrict incidental participation in tourism sports, such clustering may generate extra revenues from sport tourists. And while sports-city clusters may exhibit certain functional weaknesses, ultimately clustering provides extra visibility and marketing opportunities for host cities. This is not merely

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useful for attracting tourists, but key to the location decisions made by sports industries (manufacturers, retailers and federations).

Final Comments At rst glance, all four case studies appear to be ambitious and pioneering. But after closer analysis, and without further development, the outcomes of the four projects could be disappointing. At the moment, these sports-city zones seem to be planned as theme parks, event sites or residential resorts. Event requirements still dictate the design of these zones and so the idea of a pre-planned sports city remains elusive. There remains the opportunity for cities to develop an innovative type of urban sports quarter, and one that can be partly sustained via tourism income. Providing a more comprehensive set of themed resources may assist sports-city zones to become genuinely valuable tourism quarters, as well as viable urban districts. To achieve this, there needs to be an attempt to diversify the users of these zones, so that they are not merely used irregularly by elite athletes and passive spectators. By supplementing stadia and other venues with more participatory sports facilities, museums, halls of fame, exhibitions, demonstrations, interpretation of previous events and other sports attractions, these zones may be able to attract visitors when events are not taking place. This incidental use would allow these sites to be more fully utilized and avoid the tendency for them to be desolate, obsolete and segregated urban areas. This kind of sports city may assist the promotion of sport as a secondary activity while visiting a city and would genuinely add to the portfolio of tourism products available.

Notes
1. Pending the impact of the 20072009 recession. 2. Interestingly, this niche tourism market is not accommodated within Robinson and Gammons (2004) conceptualization of sport tourism. 3. This may change as the plans become more denite and the sites mature. 4. At the time of its construction, this was UKs tallest sculpture and it was named after a quote from 100 m Olympic Gold medallist Linford Christie. Recently, the sculpture has suffered several technical deciencies and the local council are currently seeking compensation from the company which designed and installed it. 5. Figures are not available for Doha itself 6. Of Qatars population of 610,000, 75% are expatriateswho would provide the main domestic market (Amara, 2005).

References
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