La percepción de la calidad del servicio en centros deportivos público y privado del municipio de Chihuahua, México

Objective: to analyze the perceived service quality among users of two sports centers in the municipality of Chihuahua, Mexico, one publicly managed (Centro Deportivo Tricentenario) and one privately managed (Gareka Gymnastics Academy). Method: a mixed-methods study with a concurrent qualitative-quantitative design and a descriptive-comparative scope. In a first stage, a SWOT analysis was applied to the coordinators of the Tricentenario Sports Center; in a second stage, the QUNISPORT V.MX questionnaire, validated for sport service organizations, was administered to a non-probabilistic convenience sample of 110 users of the public center and 99 of the private center. Quantitative data were analyzed using descriptive and inferential statistics (Student's t-test, p ≤ .05) in SPSS version 25, and triangulated with a thematic analysis of the SWOT diagnosis. Results: the SWOT analysis identified the lack of organization and of standardized operating procedures as the main weakness at the public center. On the QUNISPORT V.MX questionnaire, the Tricentenario Center obtained its best ratings in the instructor dimension (80.9%), sports areas (69.9%), and showers/restrooms/lockers (62.9%), while the Gareka Academy stood out in reception, complaints and suggestions (73.9%), sports equipment (72.4%), and overall center service (69.9%). Conclusions: no considerable percentage differences were observed in the overall perceived quality between the public and private sports centers; both present differentiated strengths and areas of opportunity associated with their management type, making both models viable for delivering quality sports services, provided their respective structural and organizational weaknesses are addressed.