Politics, place and nation: comparing the hosting of sport events in Korea and Taiwan

Many emerging market countries have utilized sport events as a vehicle to develop international relations and enhance their national images while promoting sport and health. For the same reason, South Korea and Taiwan have endeavoured to host mega or major sport events for their own benefits. Over the last three decades, Korea has hosted a series of mega or major events including the 1988 Summer Olympics while Taiwan’s sport events portfolio only includes the 2009 World Games and 2017 Summer Universiade. In this regard, the political geography of each country at both local and national levels accounts for the success and failure (or difficulty) of hosting mega sport events. Consequently, this article discusses the role of political geography in hosting sports events in the case of Taiwan and Korea.