International football fans are boosting British tourism – spending £684 million while here last year.
There were 800,000 international visitors, 40,000 on business, who went to a match in 2014, splashing out an average of £855 each, says a VisitBritain report.
This season is the eighth year of VisitBritain’s link with the Premier League, which encourages people from all over the world to travel to Britain to enjoy a Premier League match with the Football is GREAT campaign.
The North West of England gets the most fans with 1-in-10 visitors to the area attending a match, followed by more than 1-in-20 to the North East.
International visitors to Wales saw 1-in-40 attend live football, just ahead of Yorkshire.
Old Trafford in Manchester and Arsenal’s Emirates Stadium in London were neck and neck, both receiving 109,000 international visits. Visits to Wembley have more than doubled since 2010.
Topping the international league table for visitors who attended a football match was the Irish Republic, with 121,000. Runner-up was Norway, drawing 93,000 football-watching visitors during 2014 – well ahead of Sweden, in third place with 58,000.
VisitBritain chief executive Sally Balcombe said: “Our ambition is to convert the global interest in football and the Barclays Premier League into even more international visits to all regions across Britain.
“We’ll do this by continuing to target consumers in key markets around the world with our Football is GREAT campaign and showcasing the key destinations that are home to the Premier League clubs, such as the North East, North West, Midlands, London and Wales.”
VisitBritain is offering international fans the chance to win a VIP football trip to Britain, including flights, accommodation and VIP match day tickets as well as tickets to a selection of attractions. To enter, you must describe your dream football trip.
