The final session of the fourth edition of MESGO dedicated to the future of sport took place from 5 to 9 March 2018 in Tokyo.
This session was directed by Holger Preuss and Jean-Jacques Gouguet, respectively professor of sport economics at Johannes Gutenberg University and professor in economics at the University of Limoges.
The Tokyo session was an ideal opportunity for MESGO participants to look at the future challenges they might face as sports industry leaders in the coming period and to analyse their specific organisations in the light of another culture.
The week was rather special, with a conference organised and coordinated by the Tsukuba International Academy for Sport (TIAS), the MESGO local academic partner. The discussion focused on the future of sport governance and challenges faced by sports organisations.
The TIAS conference concluded with joint presentations by TIAS students and MESGO participants, who reflected on the future of sports organisations, the future of competition design/regulation, the future of sports marketing, the future of sports events and future ethical challenges faced by sport.
Earlier, participants were given an outsider’s and insider’s view of Japanese culture and sport, in particular through the presentation of sumo, iconic Japanese sport, by Takanobu Nakajima, the former deputy chairman of the Independent Commission of Governance Overhaul at the Japan Sumo Association.
During the week, the issue of legacy of the Tokyo 2020 Games was the hot topic presented by Haruyo Fukuda, director of action and legacy for the 2020 Summer Olympic Games in Tokyo.
At the Tokyo 2020 venue: Round-table discussion about “Tokyo 2020 and Agenda 2020 – The future of host cities” with Holger Preuss, professor, Johannes Gutenberg University; Haruyo Fukuda, director of action and legacy for the 2020 Summer Olympic Games in Tokyo and Hiromi Kawamura, PR secretary and senior project director for executive office, Tokyo 2020.
Finally, we talked about the future of football in Asia. Our day at the Japan Football Association started with a presentation of the history of Japanese football by Kohzo Tashima, president of the Japan Football Association and ended with a discussion about “markets for sport in Asia” included speakers such as Tom Byer, former AFC technical consultant; Kunihito Morimura, president and CEO at Dentsu Sports Asia and Alex Phillips, head of governance and compliance at UEFA.
At the Japan Football Association: Presentation by Kohzo Tashima, president of the Japan Football Association about football in Japan.
The MESGO participants will meet again at UEFA’s headquarters in Nyon on 5 and 6 April as part of the viva voce exam session, during which they will each defend their professional thesis. The graduation ceremony on Friday 6 April will conclude the fourth edition of the programme.
The application process for the next MESGO edition is open until 12:00 CET on Saturday 31 March.