ABSTRACT
Also, the Middle East and North Africa were plagued with civil unrest. Egypt, Libya, Tunisia, Yemen, Iran, and Bahrain are notable examples, with some of these countries (e.g. Egypt) seeing governments overthrown. This has meant a period of uncertainty for sports events in this region, which are often publicly funded endeavours. The extent of uncertainty has caused certain IFs to rethink their hosting schedule. For example, Formula 1 decided to cancel its Bahrain race given the unrest in the country, though logistics were cited as the key concern (see Cutler, 2011b). We therefore see that despite the best planning on the part of local organizers, major sports events still face noteworthy, though usually rare, external risks.
