Sustaining fan attention in professional sport leagues’ off-season: insights from pre-season tours

Abstract

Purpose – Professional teams partake in pre-season tours to sustain and develop their relationship with fans during the off-season. This study examined how viewer values enhance fan satisfaction with pre-season tours and the role of such satisfaction in shaping their attitudinal and behavioral outcomes regarding pre-season tours. Design/methodology/approach – The survey involved 375 Premier League (PL) fans residing in the UK. This study used structural equation modeling to test the relationships among seven constructs. Findings – The results indicated that the hedonic, eudaimonic and informative values of pre-season tours positively influenced fans’ tour satisfaction. Furthermore, enhanced pre-season tour satisfaction had positive impacts on team pride, intention to watch future pre-season tour games and team advocacy. Originality/value – The findings from this research deepen our understanding of pre-season tours in professional sport leagues, with potential implications for both future research and practical applications within the professional domain.