Home – Home – Jornals – Region: Economics and Sociology 2024 number 3

This paper explores how hosting a sports mega-event in a small regional center affects the business environment for local entrepreneurs. Saransk, the capital of Mordovia and one of the host cities for the 2018 FIFA World Cup, is chosen as the case study. The research methodology combines statistical analysis with content analysis of in-depth interviews. The sports mega-event in question led to infrastructural transformations, changes in institutional conditions for doing business, and creating a competitive environment in local markets. Interviews with entrepreneurs and statistical data reveal that the tourism, hotel, and restaurant sectors benefited from the influx of foreign guests. However, long-term prospects are more closely tied to domestic tourism rather than international visitors. Hosting the 2018 FIFA World Cup brought Saransk not only sports and other infrastructure facilities but also heightened competition for local businesses, particularly evident in the accommodation and retail sectors. In recent years, local entrepreneurs have had to compete with both national and international companies that entered the Mordovian market in preparation for the World Cup.