Jonathan Rocha de Oliveira

Jonathan R. Oliveira is an assistant professor of Kinesiology in the Department of Human Sciences at The Ohio State University, where he teaches and conducts research in sport management. He earned his Ph.D. in Recreation, Sport and Tourism with a concentration in Sport Management from the University of Illinois Urbana-Champaign and holds master's and bachelor's degrees in Physical Education from the Federal University of Paraná in Brazil. Before joining Ohio State, he was an assistant professor of Sport and Recreation Management at James Madison University.

Dr. Oliveira's research examines how sport organizations, events and facilities affect host communities and how managers can create more inclusive, sustainable and meaningful outcomes. A second stream of his work investigates sport tourism, particularly football (soccer) stadium tours, museums, match-day experiences and stakeholder relationships. His scholarship has appeared in the Journal of Sport & Tourism, Soccer & Society, Sport in Society and other international journals. His book, Football Tourism: An Analysis of Futbol Club Barcelona as a Tourist Attraction, was published by the Brazilian Ministry of Sports. Oliveira also brings industry experience as a stadium analyst at the 2024 CONMEBOL Copa América and as a consultant on stadium activation and fan engagement. He serves as the president of Brazilian Scholars for Sport Management and chair of the NASSM 365 Committee of the North American Society for Sport Management.

• PhD, Recreation, Sport and Tourism, University of Illinois Urbana-Champaign, 2025
• MS, Physical Education, Federal University of Paraná, 2021
• BS, Physical Education, Federal University of Paraná, 2017

• Sport Management
  • Sport Events Social Impacts with particular emphasis on hosting communities
  • Sport Facility Management Operations
• Sport Tourism
  • Impacts of Sport Tourism Events on Local Destinations
  • Sport Tourists Socio-Cultural Consumer Behavior
  • Stadium Tour, Sport Museums, and Match-Days

Oliveira’s scholarship lies at the intersection of sport management, event management and facility operations. Across his work, he seeks to identify and foster mechanisms through which sport events and sport facility operations can leverage social value for stakeholders while sustaining organizational mission and long-term viability. Using qualitative and mixed methods, including interviews, surveys, document analysis and digital consumer data, his research connects theory with actionable recommendations for practice. One research stream examines the social impacts of sport events from the perspectives of local residents and other community stakeholders. Current projects explore recurring college sport events, the conditions under which communities experience benefits or burdens and strategies for creating more inclusive and sustainable outcomes. A second stream focuses on facility operations and sport tourism, particularly stadium tours, football museums and match-day experiences, while examining how stakeholder networks shape operations and visitor evaluations.

• Oliveira, J. R. (Principal Investigator), Lopes, A., Feller, R., & Santana, W. F. (2026). Leveling the pitch: Women's pathways to leadership in Brazilian football and the 2027 FIFA Women's World Cup legacy. FIFA Research Scholarship. Awarded: $7,000.
• Oliveira, J. R. (Principal Investigator). (2025). The social impacts of college football and basketball on host communities: Examining perceptions of local residents through a mixed methods approach. Hart School Summer Research Grant, James Madison University. Awarded: $2,500.

Selected Peer-Reviewed Articles

• Tobar, FB; Karimi, M; Schultz, A; Oliveira, JR. (2026). Sport Tourist Fans’ Perceptions of Event Sustainability Strategies: Behavioral Insights from UEFA Euro 2024. Soccer & Society, 1–21. https://doi.org/10.1080/14660970.2026.2700564
• Oliveira, JR; Manjunath, S; Uvinha, RR; Capraro, AM. (2026). Sport tourism in Barcelona (Catalonia, Spain): Examining Stakeholder Influence on FC Barcelona's Tourism Operations. Journal of Sport & Tourism, 1-13. https://doi.org/10.1080/14775085.2025.2611281.
• Müller-Junior, IL; Oliveira, JR; Fredericks, JJ; Capraro, AM. (2025). Rise of Brazilian Muay Thai: Origins, Glocalization, and Mythification. Sporting Traditions, 42(2), 193-216. https://search.informit.org/doi/10.3316/informit.T2026012700008891255068136
• Warwick, L; Oliveira, JR; Sato, M. (2025). Investigating the Climate Vulnerability of North American Ultra-Endurance Running Events. Sport in Society, 1–18. DOI: https://doi.org/10.1080/17430437.2025.2450797.
• Oliveira, JR; Uvinha, RR; Silveira, CE; Capraro, AM (2024). Football tourism in the city of Barcelona: The Camp Nou Experience as a touristic attraction. Revista de Gestão e Negócios do Esporte, 9(1). https://www.revistaabragesp.org.br/index.php/home/article/view/43.
• Oliveira, JR; Uvinha, RR; Silveira, CE; Capraro, AM. (2024). “Football Tourism”: building and managing the Camp Nou Experience as a tourist attraction.  PODIUM Sport, Leisure and Tourism Review, 13(2), 221–249. DOI: https://doi.org/10.5585/podium.v13i2.23069
• Tobar, FB; Ramshaw, G; Oliveira, JR. (2024). Conceptualising the Global Touristic Football Club. Sport in Society, 27(10), 1658-1681. DOI: https://doi.org/10.1080/17430437.2024.2306900
• Tewari, K; Lundin, E; Cho, S; Du, X; Oliveira, JR; Fernandez, M. (2024). International Graduate Students’ Perspectives on Sense of Belonging in Leisure Spaces. Journal of Hospitality, Leisure, Sport & Tourism Education, 35, 100505. DOI: https://doi.org/10.1016/j.jhlste.2024.100505.
• Oliveira, JR; Souza, MTO; Capraro, AM. (2022). The media coverage and public opinion of hosting a women's football mega-event: the English bid for UEFA Women's Euro 2021. Sport in Society, 25(4), 799-818. DOI:  https://doi.org/10.1080/17430437.2022.2025778
• Oliveira, JR; Tobar, FB; Capraro, AM. (2021). Football tourism: a bibliometric analysis of published works in the tourism-based journals (2003–2019). Journal of Sport & Tourism, 25(4), 317-335. DOI: https://doi.org/10.1080/14775085.2021.1965010
• Oliveira, JR; Pereira, BO; Lise, RS; Capraro, AM. (2021) Sports tourism: a case study about the Ultimate Fighting Championship (UFC) 198 in Curitiba – Brazil. Tourism in Analysis Journal, 32(1), 19-39. DOI: https://doi.org/10.11606/issn.1984-4867.v32i1p19-39
• Vargas, PPI; Oliveira, JR; Capraro, AM. (2021). “I have missing of that time:” memories about after school sports of Curitiba (1980-1990). Brazilian Journal of Sport Sciences, 43(1), 1-8. DOI: https://doi.org/10.1590/rbce.43.e005520.
• Oliveira, JR; Capraro AM. (2020). The implications of the COVID-19 pandemic on a sports tourist attraction: A Case Study on Fútbol Club Barcelona. Iberoamerican Journal of Tourism, 10(2), 165-186. DOI: https://doi.org/10.2436/20.8070.01.184
• Oliveira, JR; Capraro, AM. (2020). Catalan independence, identity and globalization at the Fútbol Club Barcelona. Motrivivência, 32(61), 01–21. DOI: https://doi.org/10.5007/2175-8042.2020e64993
• Oliveira, JR; Vargas, PPI; Capraro, AM; Zaniol, GE. (2020). Narratives of organized supporters practicing martial arts about the violence in the football of Paraná. Licere, 23(2), 393–425. DOI: https://doi.org/10.35699/2447-6218.2020.24054
• Oliveira, JR; Vargas, PPI. (2020). Sport as an object of research in social sciences – reflections on the book "methodological possibilities for the approach to sport in social sciences". The Journal of the Latin American Socio-cultural Studies of Sport, 12(2), 191-202. https://revistas.ufpr.br/alesde/article/view/70896
• Heuer, S; Navarro, RT; Oliveira, JR; Capraro, AM. (2020). Fiction, “factions” and power: looks at the area of Physical Education from the work “Divergente”. The Journal of the Latin American Socio-cultural Studies of Sport, 12(1), 141–157. https://revistas.ufpr.br/alesde/article/view/72120
• Nemitz, CE; Oliveira, JR; Capraro, AM. (2020). The 4-1-4-1 tactic in football: its variations used by the Germany’s National Team in the 2014 Football World Cup. Brazilian Journal of Futsal and Football, 12(48), 218-229. Retrieved from: http://www.rbff.com.br/index.php/rbff/article/view/927

Book and Selected Book Chapters

• Oliveira, J. R., & Capraro, A. M. (2024). Football tourism: An analysis of Futbol Club Barcelona as a tourist attraction. Brazilian Ministry of Sports.
• Oliveira, J. R., & Tobar, F. B. (2026). Trends in sport tourism. In Tourism markets, motivations, experiences and behaviours. Elsevier. https://doi.org/10.1016/B978-0-443-27698-9.00047-7
• Oliveira, J. R., & Tobar, F. B. (2025). Unpacking motivation: Factors influencing women's travel to the 2023 FIFA Women's World Cup in Australia and New Zealand. In A. Beissel (Ed.), The 2023 FIFA Women's World Cup: Events, issues, and controversies. Routledge.
• Tobar, F. B., Petersen-Wagner, R., & Oliveira, J. R. (2024). A dark side of social media: Cancel culture in sports organizations. In A. C. Scheinbaum (Ed.), Cancel culture and brand boycotts: The dark side of social media for brands. Routledge.
• Oliveira, J. R., Souza, M. T. O., & Capraro, A. M. (2024). The media coverage and public opinion of hosting a women's football mega-event: The English bid for UEFA Women's Euro 2021. In J. A. L. Ludvigsen, J. Rookwood, & D. Parnell (Eds.), The sport mega-events of the 2020s: Governance, impacts and controversies. Routledge.

• Oliveira, J. R. (2026, March 25-27). A conceptual model of community-perceived social impacts in college sport events. College Sport Research Institute Conference on College Sport, Columbia, South Carolina.
• Oliveira, J. R., Tobar, F. B., & Romano, F. S. (2026, March 3-6). A conceptual framework for managing football tourism experiences with stadium tours and football museums. World Association for Sport Management Conference, Cape Town, South Africa.
• Alanis, M., Rocha, R., & Oliveira, J. R. (2025, October 22-24). Betting big: The influence of sports gambling on fan identification and engagement. Sport Marketing Association Conference, Phoenix-Glendale, Arizona.
• Warwick, L., Oliveira, J. R., & Sato, M. (2025, May 27-30). Investigating the climate vulnerability of North American ultra-endurance running events. North American Society for Sport Management Conference, San Diego, California.
• Oliveira, J. R., Tobar, F. B., & Sato, M. (2024, May 29-June 1). Exploring the intersection of identity and motivation: Women sport fans at the 2023 FIFA Women's World Cup. North American Society for Sport Management Conference, Minneapolis, Minnesota.
• Oliveira, J. R., Tobar, F. B., & Romano, F. S. (2024, February 13-17). Evaluating visitors' experiences with sport facilities operations: Expanding the Multidimensional Assessment Model for stadium and museum tours. Applied Sport Management Association Conference, Knoxville, Tennessee.
• Oliveira, J. R., Zou, S., Sato, M., & Welty-Peachey, J. (2023, May 31-June 3). Visitor satisfaction and experiences with sports facilities: Consumers' online reviews of FC Barcelona's stadium. North American Society for Sport Management Conference, Montreal, Canada.
• Oliveira, J. R. (2023, May 18-20). Residents' perceptions of social outcomes from hosting sport events in Brazil. International Congress of Qualitative Inquiry, Champaign, Illinois.
• Oliveira, J. R., Romano, F. S., & Tobar, F. B. (2022, October 18-22). Football tourism: A multidimensional evaluation of the visiting experience in football stadiums and museums. Brazilian Sport Management Conference, Uberlândia, Brazil.
• Oliveira, J. R., Capraro, A. M., & Welty-Peachey, J. (2022, June 2-4). The impacts of Camp Nou stadium operations in Barcelona: An analysis of managerial operations and stakeholders. North American Society for Sport Management Conference, Atlanta, Georgia.