AFL breaks attendance record; Tennis Australia gets new balls; and more
06 Sep 2018 10:58am
> AFL breaks all-time attendance record
> Dunlop to replace Wilson as Australian Open sponsor
> Ironman to bolster Sunshine Coast economy by $5m
> F1 Grand Prix appoints new hospitality partners
> Boost Mobile to back action sports start-up
AFL breaks all-time attendance record
Attendances across the 2018 AFL regular season rose by 2.35% to almost 6.9 million, breaking last year's all-time crowd record.
With the close of the home-and-away season last weekend, the AFL has revealed that a total of 6,892,161 fans attended games in 2018, an average of 34,809 per match.
The record was mainly driven by both Western Australian sides moving to the new 60,000-seat Optus Stadium – Fremantle's average crowd rose 29% to 41,764 and West Coast's was up 44.9% to 53,250.
Reigning AFL champion Richmond topped the attendance chart, with a 9.3% increase to 61,175. Other clubs posting strong growth included Collingwood (up 6.6% to 49,898), Melbourne (up 13.8% to 40,637) and Brisbane (up 11.8% to 18,406).
However, poor on-field performances led to the likes of Carlton, St Kilda and the Western Bulldogs posting double-digit crowd declines. With the average dropping 10.4% to 11,822, GWS had the lowest attendance average in 2018.
Dunlop to replace Wilson as Australian Open sponsor
Dunlop has signed a five-year partnership with Tennis Australia in a deal spanning the sport's grassroots up to the Australian Open.
Owned by Japan's Sumitomo Rubber Industries, Dunlop will replace Wilson as the official ball provider of the grand slam and all lead-in events, as well as grassroots programs throughout Australia.
Tennis Australia CEO and Australian Open tournament director, Craig Tiley, said the partnership came after several months of collaboration to create the best-possible match ball.
"This new partnership is a landmark moment… Partnering with a Grand Slam gives us an opportunity to reach new audiences and reaffirms the dedication we have to producing tennis products of the highest standards," said SRI's tennis boss, Kiyoshi Ikawa.
Ironman to bolster Sunshine Coast economy by $5m
The Queensland Government has secured a long-term partnership with the Ironman 70.3 Sunshine Coast race, which Tourism and Events Queensland estimates will add $5m to the regional economy.
Tourism Industry Development Minister, Kate Jones, said organisers expected more than 17,000 visitor nights to be generated, with 7% of the race's 1,800 competitors coming from overseas.
"This event gives us a great opportunity to showcase the Sunshine Coast… That’s why we’re investing another $36 million … in this term of government to help support events like the ironman 70.3 to grow and support tourism jobs," said Jones.
The Ironman Oceania marquee race is one of seven endurance events secured by TEQ, which collectively attracted 31,000 participants, almost 215,000 visitor nights and more than $54m in economic impact last year.
In other recent news for TEQ, the state government also secured hosting rights for next month's inaugural NFL international draft combine and revealed that more than 20,000 Chinese tourists visited this month's Royal Queensland Show.
F1 Grand Prix appoints new hospitality partners
The Australian Grand Prix Corporation has appointed three new catering and hospitality partners with a remit to increase revenue from premium and "innovative" offerings.
Following a competitive tender process, the AGPC has announced the Atlantic Group, Food&Desire and Gema Group as its official hospitality partners for the 2019 Formula 1 Grand Prix.
Corina Black, the AGPC's general manager of sales, commercial and marketing, said the three companies would work with the AGPC to deliver premium food and beverages.
"The hospitality segment is going through a period of substantial growth. No longer is it just about great food – event dining has evolved to become the ultimate fusion of food and entertainment," said Black.
Boost Mobile to back action sports start-up
Boost Mobile has continued to invest in the action sports space, linking with start-up tech company LiveHeats in a partnership which supports grassroots surfing.
The prepaid telco service will partner with LiveHeats to improve mobile connectivity for Australian Boardriders Club branches nationally. Select ABC clubs will receive free data and a 4G hotspot device, allowing them to access the LiveHeats platform at surfing events.
A web-app designed to simplify competition management in surfing and related sports, LiveHeats has users in 18 countries. The Boost partnership kicked off with North Avalon Surfriders Association, one of the largest surfing clubs in Sydney.
Boost has a long history in surfing and is the incumbent telco partner of the World Surf League in Australia. It also sponsors organisations and individuals including the Aus-X Open, Supercars outfit Holden Racing, motocross world champion Chad Reed and WSL rookie Ethan Ewing.
