Tourism and Mega Events for Local Development: The Ryder Cup Case Study in Rome

Tourism resulting from mega events is a very important phenomenon in terms of the flows of people it involves, and the tangible and intangible goods exchanged. Due to such a penetrating impact on the territory where the great event takes place, an analysis of both the costs and benefits that it generates is increasingly urgent to govern its effects and possible economic, social, and environmental developments in an increasingly sustainable and long-lasting manner. In this regard, the article traces the impacts of the Ryder Cup through the mother, Incubator, Umbrella, and Killer analysis to highlight how this event can be a unique opportunity for the territory from an environmental, social, and economic point of view to revitalize the suburbs and to leave the legacy necessary for a new growth of the local community in the dimensions of the 2030 Agenda. The great capacity of the event, and in general of all large events, to concentrate many people in a single territory in a very short time frame highlights the need to govern the difficult and complex dynamics of the different variables. For this reason, it is increasingly necessary to entrust this activity to expert people with skills and professionalism in this sector. In the current panorama and especially in the public sphere, these skills are not so clearly defined and for this reason there is great difficulty in entrusting the task of managing these events to a control room capable of governing not only the event itself, but the development of the territory with the legacy of the great event.