Sports organizers and travel trade are rooting for joint initiatives to promote sports as a key driver of tourism in Kenya
Yesterday, KTB CEO June Chepkemei disclosed that Kenya is recording low visitor arrivals in sports-related events. The country recorded 4,600 sports tourists between January and October, a figure she described as dismal.
The CEO was speaking during a capacity-building forum on sports tourism, where sports federations in Kenya were also urged to synchronize the sports events calendar to ensure tour operators can easily leverage key events to make Kenya an all-around tourism destination.
The session also had a strong focus on building synergies between tourism stakeholders and key sports event organizers in Kenya. Tour operators and hotels were particularly urged to get creative in bundling offers to ensure the repeat visits and long stays of visitors drawn by sports.
Magical Kenya Open Tournament Director Patrick Obath, who was a speaker during the forum, said that the Kenyan tourism trade should actively seek to package tourism products around key events that are already guaranteed in the annual sports calendar “The link between sports and tourism is multifaceted; first people can play sports and visit a destination where an event is taking place, and secondly, if they like the sport being hosted, they are more likely to be enticed to go visit attractions in the country. What is needed is to package the products we have in the country around events. A key feature in hosting international events is the broadcast and TV time we get around the world that exposes the country positively globally,” said Obath.
The Kenya Tourism Board CEO noted that with the privilege of hosting key local and international sports events, the destination has an opportunity to scale its tourism portfolio and provide alternatives to travelers who seek adventure and sports.
“We have the landscapes and wonderful views that can allow us to host many sports events, especially those that don’t require us to have mega facilities. Given our strong sports reputation, it should concern us that we don’t fully capitalize on sports tourism, going by the current statistics. To drive our tourism offering, our goal is to empower the travel trade to better understand and package sports tourism opportunities, “she said
She added, “As the body mandated to market the destinations’ tourism and seek opportunities that drive the sector in Kenya, we want to ensure that the sports fraternity and the Kenyan tourism players can ensure that we fully take advantage of the big opportunity sports events present.” Chepkemei noted, “We want to integrate sports tourism into our national tourism blueprint so that we can effectively target and attract sports enthusiasts, be they participants, fans, or lifestyle seekers.”
The session brought together over 100 participants drawn from across the tourism value chain to equip them with insights and strategies to leverage major sporting events for tourism growth.
According to UN Tourism, sports tourism is increasingly a key driver for the sector, generating around 10% of the world’s expenditure on tourism with an estimated growth rate of 17.5% by 2030. Studies have shown that more travelers are becoming drawn to destinations that host sporting events, with the electric atmosphere of mega competitions and the cultural allure of local sporting traditions.
The panel discussions also focused on the importance of integrating sports events with destination attractions to create compelling tourism experiences.
Viu-Tavel CEO Felix Musa said the sport is a huge area that provides jobs and is also a source of much-needed dollars. There is a need to scale the potential in this space if we can work seamlessly with organizers of events. We have learned that there is an appetite and hunger, and if well prepared, Kenyans and visitors have the willingness to spend. We call for synergy to enable operators to react better to the opportunities in the sports space.” Said Musa
The capacity-building session comes amid a busy sporting calendar for Kenya in early 2025, with the Magical Kenya Open (MKO) set to kick off in late February. The famed WRC Safari Rally also comes back from March 20–23, 2025.
