Beyond the Field: How Logistics Powers Sporting Events

Imagine watching your favorite sports event unfold, every detail flawlessly executed. While the athletes have the spotlight, there’s an unseen world working tirelessly to make it all happen. From shipping equipment across continents to ensuring deliveries arrive on time, the logistics behind sporting events are a true marvel of coordination and precision.

?Currently, the sports industry brings in $159 billion a year to the economy. In fact, the market is anticipated to expand by 5% year from now until 2033. By 2033, the global sports business is expected to generate $260 billion in revenue annually. It is anticipated that the sporting events market alone would generate $33.77 billion by the end of 2024. To upkeep such a successful industry, logistics companies spend great time planning and coordinating such events. Logistics professionals accomplish their own feats of greatness prior to the arrival of high-profile athletes and excited fans at a major professional sports event.

The challenges of planning these kinds of events seem never-ending. Every year, the location is altered, hundreds of thousands of people attend, the local climate is erratic, and the host site might not be equipped to manage the added demands. In fact, coordinating events with a high number of stakeholders, adhering to rigorous customer criteria, and timing delivery into a tight location are just a few of the coordination issues that a major football organizing committee will encounter. These are challenges that logistics managers will be familiar with. Beyond the usual logistics management scenarios, however, are tasks like coordinating with numerous federal, state, and local traffic and transportation agencies to facilitate the teams' transition between their hotel and practice locations, scheduling an 8,000-person workforce, and guaranteeing the delivery and servicing of 290 portable restrooms, 28,000 linear feet of temporary fencing, 6,500 linear feet of concrete barriers, and 74 dumpsters (on average).

Aside from football, golfing tournaments require advanced logistics planning. For instance, an average golf tournament requires around 10 50-foot refrigerated trailers to store perishable food on-site. In 2010, a large golf tournament was held. Approximately 225,000 people attended the championship over the course of seven days. Ten 50-foot refrigerated trailers were brought in by the event organizers to preserve perishable food on site, along with truckloads of concessions. Among the snacks consumed were: 200,000 water bottles, 150,000 soft drink bottles, 180,000 beer glasses, 25,000 packages of pretzels and fries, 8,000 chocolate-chip cookies, 24,000 sandwiches, and 50,000 hamburgers. This championship took around 10 years of logistics planning and continued for at least 2 months of deconstruction logistics coordination following the end of the event.

Soccer is yet another sport that requires major logistical undertaking. For example, the largest soccer event in the world occurs every 4 years since its inception in 1930 and demands plenty of raw materials to be transported to accommodate the teams and audience. First, the obvious supplies—did you know that around 3,240 soccer balls are required for this 29-day event alone? Soccer balls for this event are a whole supply chain unto themselves. They have numerous specifications and are manufactured in Pakistan. During the most recent global soccer tournament in 2022, the organizers spent $322 million on operational expenses such as logistics and hospitality. In a massive global soccer tournament such as this one, worldwide freight forwarding, event logistics, venue services, customs brokerage, warehouse services, and reverse logistics were needed to be successful.

From football to golf, logistics is the backbone of every major sporting event. As the sports industry grows, the need for efficient logistics becomes even more crucial. Behind every successful game is a team of logistics professionals who make it all possible, proving that great games rely on great logistics.