Sport facility planning and development in the eyes of local residents

Major international sport events are often accompanied by facility development that is expected to generate benefits beyond the event period. This study examines residents' perceptions of facility development related to the 2023 World Athletics Championships in Budapest, focusing on the National Athletics Centre. Using a questionnaire survey of 1,001 Budapest residents aged 18-89, representative of this population by gender and age, the study analyses perceived positive and negative impacts of the development and examines differences according to sociodemographic characteristics and forms of sport involvement. The analysis identified two dimensions of perceived impacts. Positive impacts referred to urban infrastructure, sport and leisure functions, and future sport participation opportunities, whereas negative impacts referred to expected underuse, preparation costs, and the perceived necessity of the investment. Sociodemographic characteristics were not associated with significant differences in perceptions. In contrast, following the event, being an athletics fan, and sport participation were associated with more favourable evaluations of positive impacts. The findings suggest that residents' connection to sport and to the event-related discipline may be relevant for understanding how local communities evaluate event-related sport facility development and how benefits related to future use should be communicated.