One the main themes of CCSE research work focuses on major and mega sport events, including bidding, planning, delivery and legacy.
In the last month, Professor David McGillivray has been invited to talk about this research through various media channels, reflecting on the significance of recent announcements about the Euro2028 football championships coming to Scotland and the impending decision to award the rights for the 2034 FIFA World Cup to Saudi Arabia.
First, in July, David wrote for The Herald on why ‘Mega sport events like the World Cup are bad news for human rights’. In October, UEFA announced that the UK and Ireland were to be the hosts of Euro2028 with Scotland hosting several matches. David wrote for The Herald again focusing on the need for ‘A laser-focus on the legacy from Euro2028’. This work also led to an invitation to contribute to BBC Radio Scotland’s Drivetime programme and Mornings with Kaye Adams to discuss the importance of legacy.
In November, FIFA announced that Saudi Arabia was the sole bidder to have declared an interest in hosting the 2034 FIFA Men’s World Cup. David was invited to speak to BBC Scotland’s The Nine programme about the implications of this award.
He then wrote for The Herald (FIFA must get human rights guarantee) and The Conversation (How Saudi Arabia’s unchallenged 2034 World Cup bid could weaken FIFA’s human rights demands ). These contributions are based on David’s published work relating to mega sport events and human rights, as part of the EventRights project for which he is a co-investigator.
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