Abstract The aim of this study is to identify the adoption of entrepreneurial behaviours in sports tourism in developing countries. This research is a qualitative study. The systematic method of Strauss and Corbin has been used to analyse the data. Based on the results of in-depth interviews with stakeholders (n = 25), 75 indicators of sports tourism entrepreneurship were identified. Our research findings show that the necessary institutional arrangements in regulatory/legal/administrative dimensions (rule of law, government policies), normative/cultural (social norms, values, and beliefs), cognitive/educational (promotion of elite knowledge, promotion of social knowledge) and guidance measures/supporter (public sector support, private sector support, complementary attraction and information technology) have potential to improve the rate of entrepreneurial behaviours by increasing the ability and willingness of entrepreneurs to take advantage of entrepreneurial opportunities in the field of sports tourism. Our findings suggest that co-actors need to engage in a multi-stakeholder engagement approach to promote the tourism sports industry in developing countries. The existence of a legal, normative, supportive and educational environment may influence the ability and desire of market participants to identify and embrace entrepreneurial opportunities in the sports tourism sector.

Keywords