Accounting for Mega-Events

Abstract

The 2002 FIFA World Cup Korea/Japan was the first football World Cup Finals ever to take place in Asia and be co-hosted by two countries. Drawing on data provided by the national and local organizing committees, football’s world governing institution, local and international media accounts and first-hand observations made before, during and after the event, the article discusses the contrast between discourses that forecast and described the actual impacts of the 2002 World Cup on its host societies. In particular three aspects are discussed: the specific regional political economy of the 2002 World Cup; the role of sports mega-events in identity construction and promotion; and how such events are both constituted by and constitutive of globalization. While a largely sceptical view of the economic impact informs our article, our conclusion explains the gap between forecast and actual impacts as indicative of the power struggle for determining the meaning of mega-events between different agents.