A sports event draws people to the venue, but the real reach happens online. The 2026 Olympic Festival reached 50.4 million views on social media – many times more than the number of people who walked through the venue. Based on this and other events, such as the Czech Wrestling Federation’s 130th anniversary, here is how to plan and run communication for a sports event.
Before the event: plan, roles and partners
- Goals – reach, attendance, registrations, ticket sales, partner satisfaction.
- Content plan – the key programme moments, guests, athletes, competitions.
- Team roles – who films, who edits, who publishes, who replies to comments, who approves.
- A list of partner deliverables – how many and what kind of outputs each partner should get.
- Countdown and invitations – introducing the programme, athletes and behind-the-scenes preparation.
During the event: sports newsroom mode
At a big event, content is created, edited and published continuously throughout the day. At the 2026 Olympic Festival our ten-person team and photographers published more than 1,530 outputs – up to 85 posts a day at the peak and seven an hour. Not every event needs that pace, but the principle holds: speed and authenticity beat perfect production.
- short dynamic vertical videos,
- emotions and strong moments – wins, fan reactions, personalities,
- content where people try sports themselves,
- stories, polls and questions for real-time interaction,
- quick reactions to what is happening right now.
Online × offline
Simple mechanics connect social media with how people move around the venue. At the festival, for example, we hid objects and posted clues on social media about where to find them. People followed the profile and explored the whole venue at the same time.
Partners: delivering contracts in content
Event partners have specific deliverables in their contracts, and digital is now a big part of them. At the 2026 Olympic Festival partner brands appeared in content 2,400 times – from product placement to branded posts and integration into videos. The key is to have deliverables listed in advance and tick them off as you go.
Distribution: an ecosystem, not a single profile
The biggest reach doesn’t come from the event profile alone. Involve athletes, partners, media, federations and local institutions – joint posts (collabs), shares and reposts multiply reach. The festival thus became a platform that created value for others around sport too. We describe it in detail in our 2026 Olympic Festival case study.
After the event: aftermovie and report
An aftermovie is an investment that pays off: it works on social media, the website, in partner presentations and as an invitation to next year’s event. For the Czech Wrestling Federation’s 130th anniversary we filmed interviews and introduced the award winners alongside the aftermovie. Send partners a report with numbers, content examples and a thank-you – it’s the best basis for negotiating the next edition.
What to measure
- views and reach across platforms,
- interactions and new followers,
- number of published outputs,
- partner appearances in content,
- attendance, registrations or tickets sold.
Frequently asked questions
How big a team do we need for event communication?
It depends on the size of the event. For the nationwide Olympic Festival we had a ten-person team plus photographers. A smaller tournament or conference can be handled by one or two content people and a photographer, as long as they have a plan prepared in advance.
When should we start communicating an event?
Ideally plan several weeks ahead – for partner deliverables, team roles and pre-event content. Public communication usually starts with invitations and a countdown 2–4 weeks before the event.
Is an aftermovie worth it?
Yes. It works on social media and the website, in partner presentations and as an invitation to the next edition. It’s content that keeps working long after the event ends.
How do we show partners the value of the event?
Send them a report: how often and where they appeared in content, the reach and views, examples of outputs and photos. Concrete numbers are the best argument for renewing the partnership.
