Public and sustainable development sports management applied in the Atlantic Axis of the Peninsular Iberian Northwest

Abstract

A sustainable development sports program provided by local and regional governance policies will contribute to the well-being of the communities. The aim of the present study was to examine the public sports policies of the municipalities in the Northwest Atlantic Axis of the Iberian Peninsula (the northwest area of Portugal and the south area of Galicia, Spain). A structured questionnaire was applied to 16 municipalities (13 from Portugal and 3 from Spain), addressing the main key sports areas, including organisations, facilities, funding, and sports programs. The sports facilities and sports offering data showed that Portugal had significantly more infrastructure (t = 3.32, p = .0009) and sports activities than Spain (t = 13.74, p ≈ 0). However, the cities of Spain had a significantly higher sports budget than the cities of Portugal (t = -3.17, p = .0015). The findings highlight and provide some insights for managers and policymakers, proposing strategies to enhance the social impact of sports as a tool for inclusion and community development, particularly by promoting dialogue and knowledge exchange between municipalities (both within and beyond the region) to facilitate the adoption of innovative strategies and successful practices, and strengthening research collaborations with universities and research centres.