Season ticket holder no-show behavior in the Czech Republic

Abstract

ABSTRACT Rationale In professional sports, no-shows increasingly pose a significant challenge to the management. Even though previous research has already established that such spectator no-show behavior (NSB) is more widespread among season ticket holders (STHs), the related literature has produced conflicting findings on the antecedents of such potentially defective behavior, which requires additional analysis in alternative environments. Approach Accordingly, in this manuscript, we contribute to the slowly emerging literature explaining STH NSB by analyzing a previously unexplored football environment, i.e. the Czech Republic. Findings Interestingly, our findings suggest that most effects are likely robust across the different sporting environments and markets, despite a few noticeable differences. Practical implications While our results might inform more efficient STH recruitment (e.g. younger spectators, citizens of the town), they also underline that reducing no-show rates may be hard to obtain if seat supply exceeds demand. Research contribution Although future research on alternative sports and markets might be valuable, our results suggest that the marginal benefit of additional studies tends to decrease, perhaps naturally. In contrast, also reflecting on our apparent limitations, we believe that future research approaches might benefit tremendously from mixed methods approaches, ideally in cooperation with more than only one sporting association or club.