Quality of Life as Event Legacy: an Evaluation of Liverpool as the 2008 European Capital of Culture

Improving residents’ quality of life (QoL) of is one main consideration for cities to host major events. Also, event legacy has been emerging as a key outcome associated with the hosting of an event. Based on a case study of Liverpool as the 2008 European Capital of Culture (ECOC), the aim of this study is to assess the legacy outcomes perceived by residents that benefit their QoL. Methodologically, this study is based on a combination of primary and secondary data. Data were collected from telephone survey from 592 residents of four areas representing geographical and demographical variations of Liverpool’s population. The results indicate that the most highly perceived benefits were image / identity and cultural legacies. However, respondents were less likely to perceive the legacy of economic and tourism development on their QoL. The location of community and the attendance at the ECOC events were the main variables of differences in most legacy outcomes. Overall, the results suggest that intangible impacts could relate more to people’s satisfaction with QoL and event support. The study underlines also the importance of legacy planning as a holistic programme from the early stages of event process.