Zusammenfassung

At a global level, sports tourism is one of the most profitable branches of tourism. Millions of persons, from all over the world, travel annually in order to assist or participate in various sports competitions, whether we are talking about tennis, football or handball. This paper aims to analyze the evolution of sports tourism through the most important football competition in the world – World Cup. This event has gathered, since the first edition, a large number of persons. Over time, there have been millions of supporters who have witnessed matches, a number that has grown since the development of the competition, with the increase in the number of games played at the final tournament and the intense media coverage of athletes with whom the fans have been able to create stronger relationships through social media.