Field Configuration Around a Major Sport Event: Boundary Work and Implications for Perpetuation of “The Legacy Rhetoric”

Abstract

This research analyzed the Gold Coast 2018 Commonwealth Games (GC2018) as a field configuring event (FCE). The research develops understanding around the key actors, processes, and products of field configuration prompted in the host community of a major event. A qualitative single case study research design was used that relied on interview data, participant observations, and organizational documents. Findings demonstrated how boundary work by GC2018 field-level governance actors yielded a focus on achieving legacy outcomes for a select few host community stakeholders. This study adds new insight on the persistence of “the legacy rhetoric” in event management. Recognition of the exclusionary nature of boundary work associated with field governance around major events emerged as a key prerequisite for shifting thinking beyond the legacy rhetoric and towards a more holistic leveraging perspective.