Examining destination image sentiment and influencing factors in mega sport events: A multilingual analysis of YouTube comments

Abstract

This study examines the impact of mega-events on public sentiments and perceptions of the host destination through social media. Drawing on cognitive appraisal theory, the research examines factors that positively and negatively affect public sentiments toward the destination. User-generated content was collected from FIFA's official YouTube channel, which hosts more than 11,000 videos. Four videos relevant to the study were selected from the dataset, and 220,426 comments written in 55 different languages were extracted using Python-based language identification tools. The data were analyzed using a combination of methods, including the multilingual Bidirectional Encoder Representations from Transformers model, Latent Dirichlet Allocation, and human-assisted interpretation, to identify destination image scenarios associated with the mega-sport event. The findings discussed the positive and negative sentiments expressed by the public toward the destination before and after the mega event. Our results showed that the opening and closing ceremony footage of the sports event, as well as the preparation and organization of the event, have not only attracted a favorable image toward the host destination but also helped mitigate negative and controversial issues associated with human rights and labor abuse, primarily raised by Western media. Despite earlier concerns about labor and human rights abuses, the situation has improved the perception of Middle Eastern nations, such as Qatar, as tourism destinations. Furthermore, from the pre-event phase to the end of the tournament, social media users continuously expressed positive sentiments, underscoring the power of digital communication in influencing perceptions of the host venue. The study discussed theoretical and practical implications and directions for future studies.