International Journal of Event Management Research Volume 6 Number 1, 2011 www.ijemr.org Page 1 © IJEMR All rights reserved RECEIVING A STANDING OVATION FOR THE EVENT: A COMPREHENSIVE MODEL FOR MEASURING FAN SATISFACTION WITH SPORTS AND ENTERTAINMENT EVENTS Scott Wysong University of Dallas Philip Rothschild Missouri State University Sri Beldona University of Dallas ABSTRACT Every year, millions of people attend sports and entertainment events across the globe resulting, in a multi- billion dollar industry. Yet, the question remains: Are these customers (i.e., the fans) satisfied? More specifically, what are the variables that drive satisfaction with an event? If an event collects and analyzes customer satisfaction data, its management is better positioned to make staffing and process adjustments in an effort to improve customer service. If an event does not measure customer satisfaction, managers end up merely hoping their customers are satisfied. Despite its importance, few academic researchers have examined event customer satisfaction overall or the factors that influence it. Hence, the purpose of this paper is to outline the importance of customer satisfaction at sports and entertainment events, discuss the challenges that events face, with regard to measuring customer satisfaction, and develop a theoretical model of sports and entertainment event customer satisfaction. In doing so, researchers will have a cohesive framework to guide future empirical investigations. KEYWORDS Event fans, Customer satisfaction INTRODUCTION Every year, millions of people around the globe attend sports and entertainment events, such as games, concerts and festivals, resulting in a multi-billion dollar industry. Yet, the question remains: How do these events measure whether their customers (the fans that attend the events) are satisfied? If an event collects and analyzes customer satisfaction data, its management is better positioned to make staffing and process adjustments in an effort to improve customer service. If an event does not measure customer satisfaction, event managers