The umbrella orgranisation for governing and representative bodies of sport and recreation in the UK anonymously asked chairs and chief executives of the biggest NGBs about their experiences of bidding for major events, and 50 per cent of those that answered said that they were not offered sufficient support from Government.

Andy Reed, chair of the Sport and Recreation Alliance and a former Labour MP, said: "What's palpable from our event today is that London 2012 has shown that when it comes to hosting major sport events - the UK is up there with the very best.

"What's more we've got lots of events coming up in the calendar to keep that momentum going - the Rugby World Cup [in 2015] and Commonwealth Games [in 2014] to name just a couple.

"This is all great, but our research has shown that the financial risk of holding major events is holding some governing bodies back.

"Major events is a global growth market that is out there for the taking - greater local authority support as well as the Government putting their proposed Major Events Bill into action would really help the UK to exploit the big opportunities that are out there more."

However, UK Sport Director of Major Events and International Relations, Simon Morton, dismissed the results of the survey, claiming that the number of major events secured in the UK speaks for itself.

"Well that's certainly not the feedback we hear from National Governing Bodies," he told insidethegames upon being informed of the statistics.

The IRB Rugby World Cup will take place in England in 2015, and the Commonwealth Games will be held in Scotland next year

"We work with a huge range of governing bodies efficiently and effectively and I think that the results speak for themselves in terms of the big international sporting events that are coming from the country.

"The UK is one of the, if not the, leading European nation in terms of hosting major events, so the output is extremely positive."

UK Sport's Gold Event Series hopes to bring 70 major events to the nation over the coming six years, but with the survey suggesting that a sizeable number of NGBs are seemingly concerned about government support and funding issues, the challenge could well be greater than expected.

The £27 million ($42 million/€32 million) National Lottery-funded project aims to work with European and international federations in order to bring some of the world's top sporting events to the UK, including 36 World and European Championships over the next six years.

The survey also found that 83 per cent of NGBs were only "just as likely" to bid for a major event following London 2012, as opposed to being more or less likely, suggesting that despite the feel-good factor in the UK nearly a year on from the Games, NGBs are still very wary of the risks involved in bidding for and hosting major events.

A total of 67 per cent claimed that the main deterrent from bidding for major events was in fact the financial risks involved, with a majority 38 per cent saying that "providing the highest financial guarantee" was the key component to a successful bid.

A Department for Culture, Media and Sport spokesman said: "The UK has attracted a huge series of major sports events over the next few years and the Government is completely committed to doing all that we can to land more. 

"Both Hugh Robertson and Lord Coe attended SportAccord in St Petersburg last month to bang the drum for Britain on this front.

"We have an excellent relationship with national governing bodies on major events -this survey makes absolutely no sense at all."

Contact the writer of this story at [email protected]


Related stories
April 2013: UK Sport joins SportAccord Convention in promoting Gold Event Series legacy
F ebruary 2013: London 2012 and Glasgow 2014 establish Britain as premier sporting destination, insists UK Sport official
November 2013: UK Sport Gold Event Series is a fantastic London 2012 legacy says Lee