Sport and tourism as elements of place branding: a case study on Poland

Abstract

This article focuses on sport and tourism as important components of place branding process (national, regional and local). The literature in the field of place branding is reviewed. Next, the article discusses the importance of creating brand image on a domestic (national), regional and local (city) scale, including the subjects (stakeholders) involved in this process. This article also presents arguments in favor of the use of tourism and sport to help create a national, regional or local brands. Moreover, the co-relations between the place’s brand and its image were analyzed, and the stages of tourism brand identity management were identified. Finally, Polish initiatives on sites branding have been reviewed: the brand of “Poland” - as an example of national brand, and awarded in the Super Brands Contest 2011 the following Polish city brands: “Poznan - the City of Know - How”, “Fall in love with Warsaw”, and “Masuria - the Wonder of Nature” as examples of the regional brands. The analysis of strategic documents and case studies found that there is a need for branding of places, by taking comprehensive measures in the area of marketing with the use of sports and tourism. The task of the authors is, therefore, to highlight that the branding of above mentioned elements should be subject to greater interest for Polish public administration, with emphasis on foreign patterns of creating the branding of places, not only in branches such as football, but also to popularize other sports in our country, such as volleyball, handball, rowing, and boxing.