Sports are an important part of the national economy, with significant benefits to individual lives and society, contributing significantly to consumption, investment, productive activity and employment. The value-added amount of the sport industry is estimated as a satellite account of the national accounts system (SNA). In Japan, the Development Bank of Japan has been estimating sport GDP since 2017 in a way that is comparable to European results. Sport GDP represents the total value-added amount generated by sport-related economic activities. However, to analyze how sport participation is linked to economic value, it is essential to take an approach based not only on the value-added amount but also on final demand, such as consumption, investment, and exports. In this paper, we devised a new framework for describing the economic structure of the sport industry and other industries and we developed an input-output table for analyzing the sport sector. The estimation resulted in an output value of 11,374 billion yen and a gross value added of 7,077 billion yen for the sport industry in 2018. With imports from abroad amounting to 962 billion yen, the market size of the sport industry (total supply = total demand) is 12,336 billion yen. The breakdown of total demand is 1,979 billion yen for intermediate demand in the sport industry and 9,687 billion yen for domestic final demand, of which 8,753 billion yen is for consumption and 925 billion yen is for investment. Exports to foreign countries amounted to 670 billion yen.

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Athlete advocacy refers to the efforts of elite athletes to raise public awareness of social and political issues. While previous research has examined the public’s mixed reaction to athlete advocacy from various perspectives, little has been studied about the factors that determine this reaction. This study aims to investigate the determinants of public reaction to athlete advocacy, focusing on two key factors : perceived effort and perceived fit. Additionally, the moderating effect of athlete attachment is also examined. Specifically, this study explores public reaction to the racial advocacy of Naomi Osaka. Data was collected from 855 Japanese adults through an online survey. Results from Latent Moderated Structural Equation Modeling (LMS) analysis indicate that perceived effort and perceived fit significantly associate with the public’s positive or negative reaction to athlete advocacy. However, the moderating effects of athlete attachment on the relationship between advocacy attributes and public reaction are mixed. This study contributes to the literature by examining the determinants of public reaction to athlete advocacy from the attribution theory perspective. Furthermore, as athletes’ engagement in social issues can affect their brand image, the findings of this study are useful for athletes developing strategies for disseminating their advocacy efforts.

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Clarifying the effects of mega sporting events is an important issue. This study was conducted on the residents of pre-camp sites to identify changes in their sports lifestyles and attitudes toward sports before and after the Tokyo 2020 Olympic and Paralympic Games (Tokyo 2020). By examining these changes in relation to the hosting of Tokyo 2020, the effects of the mega-sports event were discussed. Data were collected through a questionnaire survey conducted before and after Tokyo 2020. The survey targeted students (elementary, junior high, and high school students) from schools located in the Tokyo 2020 pre-camp sites. The sample size was 3,129 for the pre-survey and 2,299 for the post-survey. A comparison of changes in sports life and attitudes toward sports before and after Tokyo 2020 did not reveal consistent changes in these survey items. However, positive changes were observed in some of the items related to sports spectating, sports volunteering, and attitudes toward sports after Tokyo 2020. These results suggest that mega-sporting events held in the social context of the coronavirus pandemic influence sports promotion, and may contribute to the promotion of sports spectating and sports volunteering, and the formation of positive attitudes toward sports. Previous studies on mega-sporting events have focused on the economic effects and regional benefits. In contrast, this study suggests that the holding of mega-sporting events may also contribute to sports promotion. However, this study could not identify the factors and mechanisms that cause the event holding effect. More research is needed to verify the effects of mega-sports events in the future.

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The purpose of this study was to identify and clarify the qualities and abilities of sport event producers who plan and manage sport events from interview data obtained from producers. First, we conducted a preliminary survey on what kind of human resources sport event producers are, and narrowed down the research target to producers of women's professional golf tournaments. Nine respondents were selected by snowball sampling, and interviews were conducted, and the KJ method was used for analysis. The results revealed the ability to set up a competition venue and to build relationships with stakeholders, in addition to the qualities and abilities shown in previous studies. The results of this study suggest the possibility of developing human resources who can produce various types of sporting events beyond competitions, and contribute to the mobility and networking of producers.

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Sports volunteers play an important role in sports event management. There are various motivations for the participants of sports volunteer activities. In particular, the occurrence of sports events has significantly decreased due to the impacts of COVID-19. At the same time, consideration should be given as to whether it is possible to find value and reward from volunteer activities or not. The purpose of this study was to investigate the relationship between event satisfaction and interdependent happiness in sports volunteers. This research focused on sports volunteers of the 2021 Asia Triathlon Championships Hatsukaichi. The data was collected from 163 participants, with a significant response rate of 48.9%. The average respondent age was 54.0 years old, 123 respondents were male (75.5%), and 40 respondents were female (24.5%). The result of multiple regression was significant (F = 3.28, p < .01) and it accounted for 20 % of the interdependent happiness. The predictors of socio-demographics were not deemed significant. On the other hand, event satisfaction was significant (p < .01) with regard to independent happiness. This research utilized the relationship between event satisfaction and independent happiness through structural equation modeling. The result of Structural Equation Modeling was significant at the .10 % level. In sum, event satisfaction was significant in regard to independent happiness. This result shows a possibility to help understand the value of sports volunteers. Additionally, sports events in the community are expected to have not only an economic impact, but also, contribute to the sustainable social developments of the community.

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