Motivations of fans’ for attending a sporting event. Case study of Cavaliada Poznań

Abstract

The aim of the study was to recognize the socio-demographic profile of a horse-riding event fan, and to determine the motives for attending Cavaliada in Poznan. For this reason, a literature query explaining the research issues was carried out. The theoretical basis for the development of the original interview questionnaire was the division of Freyer and Gross, who distinguished four types of orientation among the motives for participating in sports events. The questionnaire served as a research tool and made it possible to collect data. The main result of the empirical research is that the Cavaliada in Poznan is usually supported by young people. The passion associated with horses is mainly dealt with by women who are often professional or amateurish equestrians. Participation in such an event provides the fans with numerous, positive emotions. The most important for the respondents (N = 818) turned out to be a group of motives oriented towards the emotional experience.