Designing small-scale sport events in the countryside

Purpose – The purpose of this paper is to develop and illustrate a conceptual tool for the planning of rural sport events. Design/methodology/approach – The proposed model is elaborated based on theoretical contributions from the tourism and event literature, and illustrated with an empirical case concerning a sport and cultural event arranged in the Chianti countryside in Italy. Findings – The results suggest that a form of professionalization of the event design process, understood as the search of high-quality experience for the local population and the tourists, is feasible within the socialization style of model typical of small events. Research limitations/implications – This study is based on selected theoretical contributions, and on a limited empirical investigation. Further research is needed in order to better understand the event design process, and in particular the processes of communication and involvement among the different community members. Practical implications – The practical implications are related to the possible use of the developed model. Originality/value – The theoretical contribution of this study is relative to the use of the concept of tourism experience, and more specifically of the embodied tourism experience, within the context of event design.