Game of Stones: Bringing new audiences to a 500-year-old Scottish Sport: CASE STUDY

This case study explores the current status of a 500-year-old sport of curling in Scotland, focusing particularly on the Edinburgh Curling Club, opened since 1980 at Murrayfield in the heart of Scotland’s capital city of Edinburgh. The case considers how to diversify the membership of a very traditional sport. The challenge is to diversify membership without alienating traditional users, particularly the loyal senior members and to attract new members when competition for leisure time is intense in modern everyday life. Furthermore, the case contemplates strategies for increasing revenue outside of the winter season when the ice is drained. As an unusual sport, this case study is useful as it makes students research thoroughly and avoids them relying on their own personal knowledge of a sport. It can be used in two core ways: 1) as a basis for a marketing planning discussion and development, and 2) to explore the overall strategic situation of a historical sport in our busy modern lives.