SportBusiness Group, the world’s leading supplier of information, media and B2B marketing services to the sports industry, has today announced details of the inaugural International Sport Tourism Conference, which will take place during the week of the 2010 FIFA World Cup final in host city Johannesburg.

(Left: Lord Coe, Chairman of the London 2012 Organising Committee, centre, with Chris Frost, WSDE Director, right, and Tony Prince WSDE Director, left)

The International Sport Tourism Conference is being held at the Sandton Convention Centre, Johannesburg on 5 July 2010 and will form part of the five-day World Sport Destination Expo (WSDE), the world’s first dedicated sport tourism exhibition.

The ground-breaking conference will feature a prestigious line-up of leading experts and decision-makers in sport tourism. Through a series of keynote addresses and panel debates, the one-day event is aimed at helping delegates tap into the booming sport tourism market.

Topics will include how to attract sports events and sports tourists; navigating the international sports bidding cycle; how to use sport to deliver a powerful economic boost to your region; what it takes to be a world-leader in sports hosting.

Chris Frost, WSDE Director, said: “Sport tourism is the travel industry’s fastest growing sector, yet an area with complex mechanics that have not yet been fully understood or realised. The one-day conference will be a real opportunity for both WSDE exhibitors and visitors to gain invaluable insights from the advanced knowledge of market leaders. ”

“SportBusiness is recognised as the market leader in sport tourism strategies and the launch of the International Sport Tourism Conference shows the importance the industry is ascribing to WSDE.”

SportBusiness Group’s Publishing Director, Phil Savage said: “Sport and host nations/cities have come together very powerfully in recent years. You only have to look at the coverage of Brazil’s 2016 Olympic win to see that interest is at an all time peak. Below the level of the Olympics, there are many more opportunities for countries to get the benefit of hosting sports event and this conference will demonstrate how to do it.”

Sport Tourism is the most dynamically advancing sector in the travel and tourism industry with an estimated value of $600 billion a year; and is set to grow further within the next decade – at a time when some traditional tourism trends are in decline.

The International Sport Tourism Conference will take place on the opening day of WSDE and coincides with the 2010 FIFA World Cup when the eyes of the world will be on both South Africa and sports tourism. There has never been a better time or place to discover the exciting opportunities that await destinations and operators in the world of sport.

This conference will prove invaluable to bidding cities and nations, sports federations, resorts and hotels, tour operators, specialist event organisers, organising committees and financial investors.

For more details visit www.worldsportdestinationexpo.com