Check out Zachary Franklin’s editorial at China Sports Review about China’s empty sports venues. According to the article, China has spent billions to build several massive sports stadiums in a bidding effort to host major athletic events like the 2008 Olympic games, the 2009 East Asian Games, and the 2012 and 2014 Youth Olympic summer and winter games.
Franklin discusses the possible motivations behind these building projects, such as the prospect of new infrastructure and the likelihood of attracting tourists. The result, however, has been far from lucrative, as the venues have struggled to fill seats, especially taking into consideration that China has “no homegrown athletic teams in any sport that can fill stadiums to capacity on a weekly basis,” including China’s own Basketball Association.
To find out more, read the article here.
