Investigating motivational factors that influence football match attendance in the South African Premier Soccer League post the 2010 FIFA world cup

Abstract

South Africa has a strong sporting culture and has successfully hosted big international sport events including the rugby, cricket, and soccer world cups. Spectators are an important factor in the success of such events. Using social exchange theory as the theoretical basis and employing motivational factors drawn from the literature on sport motivation, this study investigates the motivational factors that influence match attendance in the South African Premier Soccer League post the 2010 FIFA World Cup. The survey-based study employed a 26-item data collection instrument and a convenience sample of 70 respondents. Factor analysis was used to identifying six underlying motivational factors that influence match attendance. The findings show that the top three a priori motivational factors were entertainment, family appeal, and socialisation. These were supported by the factors extracted in the present study namely soccer subculture, family appeal, excitement seeking supporters, brand leisure seekers, entertainment, and vicarious achievers.