Unpacking the Role of Experience-Driven Well-Being and Psychological Ownership in Football Tourists' Post-Event Behavioral Intentions

This study investigates post-event behavioral intentions of football tourists participating in a tournament as team players. It is grounded in the experience economy theory and its connection to well-being and psychological ownership in the sports tourism sector. Accordingly, the research question is: To what extent do football tourists' well-being perceptions, driven by the event experience, influence psychological ownership, and how does psychological ownership, in turn, affect their post-event behavioral intentions? A quantitative approach was employed, collecting survey data from 372 male football players participating in the 13th Masters Atatürk Spring Tournament in Antalya, Türkiye. PLS-SEM results revealed that education- and escapism-related experiences significantly enhanced participants' perceived well-being. These heightened well-being perceptions fostered psychological ownership toward the event, which, in turn, positively influenced post-event behavioral intentions, including willingness to pay more, word-of-mouth, and intention to revisit. The study shows the vital role of psychological ownership, driven by enhanced well-being through educational and escapist experiences, in shaping the post-event behavioral intentions of football tourists. It contributes to the experience economy theory and provides practical guidance for designing football events that cultivate stronger engagement and loyalty among athlete tourists.