Five rings, two worlds: untangling motivational differences between American and Chinese customers during the 2020 and 2022 Olympic Games

Purpose Guided by the uses and gratifications theory, this study aims to investigate the motivational differences between American and Chinese Olympic audiences. Design/methodology/approach Surveys conducted on both the 2020 Tokyo Summer Games and the 2022 Beijing Winter Olympics revealed significant differences in media consumption between American and Chinese Olympic audiences. Findings Chinese audiences used more social media and digital media, while American audiences consumed more TV and print media to obtain Olympic news. Additionally, the study highlighted the motivational differences: Chinese audiences exhibited higher levels of patriotism motives, while American audiences were more motivated by entertainment, aesthetics, eustress, escape, group affiliation and family needs. The motives also influenced media consumption prediction differently for each group. Originality/value The study advances our understanding of the diversity of the Olympic media markets and reinforces how markets can shape users’ behaviors and motivations.