Strategic sport communication and the making of place

Abstract

This thesis examines the communicative role of sport mega-events in Saudi Arabia from a place-centred strategic sport communication perspective, with particular attention to their role in nation branding and reputation formation. Moving beyond media-centric and outcome-focused approaches, the study conceptualises sport mega-events as strategically organised communicative environments through which place, identity, and reputation are articulated, negotiated, and contested. Addressing key gaps in sport communication and strategic communication scholarship, the research shifts the focus from visibility and exposure to communicative processes, professional expertise, and meaning-making at the national level. Adopting an interpretivist qualitative design, the study draws on semi-structured interviews with 32 communication experts operating across governmental and non-governmental institutions in Saudi Arabia and applies reflexive thematic analysis to examine how SMEs are embedded within broader governmental communication strategies. The analysis explores three interconnected dimensions: the role of strategic communication in nation branding, the role of sport communication within nation- branding processes, and the perceived impact of nation branding on Saudi Arabia’s reputation. The findings demonstrate that strategic communication in Saudi Arabia is understood as a long- term, place-centred process characterised by coordination, narrative governance, and institutional negotiation, rather than by isolated messages or short-term campaigns. Sport communication emerges as a strategically central yet contested communicative practice through which nation-branding efforts are organised and enacted. Empirically, the study extends Anholt’s Competitive Identity framework by identifying sport itself as a distinct and contextually influential nation-branding dimension that amplifies tourism, culture, policy, investment, people, and brands, while producing differentiated effects across these domains. In terms of reputation, the findings reveal a dual dynamic of transformation and contestation. While sport communication accelerates reputational change by projecting narratives of reform, ambition, and openness, it simultaneously intensifies exposure to critique, including sportswashing accusations. Reputation is therefore understood not as a stable outcome but as an ongoing process of negotiation shaped by cumulative impressions over time. The thesis contributes to sport communication scholarship by advancing a strategic sport communication conceptualisation and repositioning sport communication as a central analytical lens for understanding how states communicate place, identity, and reputation in global contexts.