VisitBritain’s report, #Football tourism scores for Britain, shows that the 800,000 international visitors to Britain last year who went to a football match spent a total of £684 million during their time in the country … a 15% rise, or an increase of £89 million, since the last research was done in 2010. While the overall global average spend on an international visit to Britain in 2014 was £636, visits including football match attendance had an average spend of £855.
It’s not just leisure visitors who enjoy football matches; out of the 800,000 total, more than 40,000 international business visitors went to a match during their stay.
The findings show that football is the number one sporting draw for international tourists to Britain. Of those visitors who gave their primary journey purpose to the UK as ‘watching sport,’ 73% said they had attended a football match.
The research also demonstrates football’s effectiveness in enticing international visitors to Britain at quieter times of the year and encouraging visitors from overseas to explore different parts of Britain. The North-West of England continues to be the region receiving the highest proportion of football-driven visits from overseas.
Looking at visits to specific stadiums, Old Trafford in Manchester and Arsenal’s Emirates Stadium in North London were neck-and-neck, both receiving 109,000 international visits. Wembley’s popularity has grown significantly, with visits more than doubling since 2010.
Tourism Minister Tracey Crouch, said: ‘Britain is home to many of the world's favourite football clubs, so it's no surprise that more and more international visitors are going to football games while they are here. Millions of overseas tourists visit the UK every year and most take in the sights of London. But Britain has so much more to offer, so it's fantastic to see the positive role football is playing in showcasing key destinations in many different regions of the UK. It's great for local economies, great for football, and great for the UK's tourism industry."
The research was undertaken for VisitBritain by the Office for National Statistics as part of the International Passenger Survey during 2014.
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