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Official Spokesperson and Board Member of the Jordan Tourism Board (JTB), Hani Al-Dabbas, affirmed that Jordan is witnessing a qualitative shift in its tourism strategy, based on transitioning from traditional promotion of tourist sites to marketing the Kingdom as an integrated destination for international events and experiences, contributing to diversifying the tourism product, expanding target markets, and curbing demand seasonality.
​Speaking on the "Sports Magazine" program on Jordan Television, Al-Dabbas explained that this transformation falls within a governmental orientation led by the Ministry of Tourism and Antiquities, under the directives of Minister of Tourism and Antiquities and Chairman of the JTB Board of Directors, Dr. Imad Hijazin, and in active partnership with the private tourism sector. This comes within a vision aimed at converting the Kingdom's tourism assets into sustainable economic opportunities while enhancing Jordan's regional and international competitiveness.
​He pointed out that the approach adopted by the Ministry and the Board reflects a practical shift from isolated promotional initiatives to integrated institutional planning, where the partnership between the government and the private sector constitutes a fundamental pillar for developing tourism products, attracting international events, and maximizing their returns on hotels, restaurants, transport, tourism facilities, and supporting services.
​Al-Dabbas noted that sports tourism has become a global economic industry, accounting for approximately 10% of international tourism expenditure, with an estimated value reaching $672 billion in 2025 according to UN Tourism data, opening promising opportunities for Jordan to capitalize on this growing market.
​He considered the Jordan Mixed Martial Arts Week a practical model of this direction, featuring 14 fights with participation from fighters representing 16 countries, and hosting international stars—most notably Ronaldinho, Mike Tyson, Engin Altan, and Hasbulla—who possess extensive fan bases extending across Latin America, the United States, Turkey, Asia, and other international markets.
​He emphasized that the marketing value of hosting these figures lies not merely in the presence of celebrities themselves, but in their ability to convey Jordan's image to new audiences, especially since sports and digital content creation have become among the most influential tools shaping interest in tourist destinations.
​He added that linking events to the Roman Theatre, Citadel Hill, the Dead Sea, and Petra provides tourist sites with direct visibility within global media content, noting that the goal is to shift from reaching tourists already searching for Jordan to attracting audiences for whom Jordan was not previously among their travel choices.
​Al-Dabbas clarified that the economic impact of these events extends beyond direct activity at tourism establishments to building future demand for the Jordanian destination, stressing the importance of measuring results through content reach in target markets, engagement volume, and tourist interest, culminating in actual bookings and visits.
​He highlighted that efforts to diversify markets and products, alongside domestic tourism programs—foremost among them "Urdunnah Jannah"—have contributed to supporting the continuity of tourism facilities and mitigating the impact of regional challenges, emphasizing that addressing seasonality requires distributing tourist movement geographically and chronologically, rather than confining it to traditional seasons and destinations.
​He revealed ongoing work to draft a national calendar of sports events for 2027 in cooperation among the Ministry of Tourism and Antiquities, the Jordan Tourism Board, the Ministry of Youth, the Olympic Committee, and sports federations, in full integration with the private sector to ensure the sustainability of events and direct them toward periods and regions with lower occupancy.
​Al-Dabbas concluded by stressing that the success of the governmental direction is measured not solely by the number of events or the scale of media coverage, but by Jordan's capacity to convert this international presence into economic growth, employment opportunities, and sustainable tourism flows, emphasizing that integrating the government's vision with private sector expertise forms the foundation for building a more resilient, competitive tourism sector capable of confronting challenges.
​Source: Rum News Agency