How do spectator-to-spectator negative interactions lead to a less memorable and recommended sport tourism experience through internal attention and involvement?

Purpose On-site tourist experience co-creation enhances memorability, and the latter precedes tourists’ intention to revisit and recommend the experience/destination to others. However, tourists’ interaction is not always perceived as positive, co-destroying experience value. This study aims to examine the influence of experience value co-destruction on sport tourists’ future behavioural intentions, considering the mediating effects of internal attention, involvement and memorability. Design/methodology/approach Data were gathered from 254 non-resident spectators at Tudor Nazaré Tow Surfing Challenge event in Portugal. Findings The results showed that value co-destruction during a sport tourism experience negatively influences spectators’ internal attention and involvement, which further impacts their memorability and behavioural intentions. Practical implications Sport event managers should minimize and reverse negative sport tourists’ interactions to enhance the spectators’ attention and involvement in the experience. In addition, to boost the memorability and behavioural intentions, spectators’ involvement should be prioritized through leveraging sport culture and event-generated liminality. Originality/value This study expanded the research lens of co-destruction of tourist experience value by integrating cognitive psychology and behavioural outcomes, validating the on-site tourist experience co-creation model to co-destruction and extending it to behavioural intentions.