Press release -
RBS 6 Nations carries tourism boost
As Scotland gets set to kick off this year’s RBS 6 Nations campaign, VisitScotland is looking forward to the huge tourism benefits that hosting rugby’s greatest tournament bring to the nation.
In 2014, a RBS report found that in a typical season visitors to Edinburgh for RBS 6 Nations matches generated £52 million of revenue for Scotland’s economy, £30 million of which was for Edinburgh’s economy.
RBS’s research also showed that £35 million (£24 million in Edinburgh) comes from spending by visitors who attend the matches and their family and friends who accompany them to Edinburgh. An amazing £17 million (£6 million in Edinburgh) comes from spending on hotels, restaurants and bars.
Scotland will host two fixtures at BT Murrayfield in this year’s championship, with home matches taking place Saturday 6 February (England) and Sunday 13 March (France). Both are expected to see thousands of travelling home and away fans flock to the capital.
The resulting economic impact is expected to be even higher this year, with Scottish Rugby selling out BT Murrayfield in record time for both games as interest in the sport continues to surge following Scotland’s successful run to the quarter final stages of the Rugby World Cup last summer.
The games are also expected to provide a boost to Edinburgh Trams, who are running an enhanced service to accommodate the extra 15,000 passengers who will make their way to BT Murrayfield via the city’s tram network on each match day.
VisitScotland research shows that travelling to Scotland for a sporting event is a popular activity. In 2013, 700,000 nights were spent in Scotland by domestic visitors attending/watching a sporting event, resulting in £59 million boost for the Scottish economy.
Malcolm Roughead, Chief Executive of VisitScotland, said: “The RBS 6 Nations games always create an exciting and friendly atmosphere in Edinburgh and across Scotland.
“These world class sporting events provide more than just entertainment, they represent a multi-million pound tourism opportunity which delivers economic, cultural and social benefits.
“We look forward to welcoming rugby fans to the upcoming games with England and France and hope to see many extending their stay into extra time to explore Scotland beyond the pitch.”
Dominic McKay, Scottish Rugby’s Chief Operating Officer said: “The current Scotland team has made a real connection with rugby fans, especially after their performances at the Rugby World Cup, and this is reflected in the record levels of demand for tickets we are seeing for international matches at BT Murrayfield.
“The economic impact rugby generates throughout the RBS 6 Nations not only benefits local and national businesses. The weekly fixtures of our pro teams in Edinburgh and Glasgow, which also bring visitors into the country, mean we can invest money each year into grassroots rugby across the country, to grow the game for the future.”
Caption: Scotland's Finn Russel shakes hands with fans at full-time after Scotland V Italy in a 2015 Rugby World Cup warm up match at BT Murrayfield. Credit: SNS/Scottish Rugby.
Topics
- Tourism
Categories
- corporate communications
- sportstourism
Regions
- Scotland
Notes to Editors
- Follow us on twitter: @visitscotnews
- VisitScotland is Scotland’s national tourism organisation. Its core purpose is to maximise the economic benefit of tourism to Scotland.
- The organisation’s core objective is to contribute to the Tourism 2020 Strategy ambition of growing tourism revenues by £1 billion by 2020.
- This will be supported by seven overarching strategies:
- Marketing: we will market Scotland and its outstanding assets to visitors from all parts of the world, including the promotion of Scotland to people living in Scotland to visit different parts of the country
- Events: we will support the national events strategy and its delivery, and sustain, develop and promote Scotland’s international profile as one of the world’s foremost events destinations
- Internationalisation and International Engagement: we will utilise all our platforms to enable Scottish-based tourism businesses to better understand international opportunities and market to a global audience and we will work within One Scotland Partnerships to optimise the potential of Scotland’s Diaspora and our strategic partners at regional, European and global levels
- Customer Experience: we will provide information and inspiration to visitors both locally and globally via their preferred medium of choice
- Quality and Sustainability: we will provide support and advice to businesses, with the goal of improving the quality and sustainability of the tourism sector in Scotland. We will provide quality assurance to visitors through our Quality Schemes
- Inclusive Tourism: we will strive to make tourism in Scotland inclusive and available to all
- Working in Partnership: we will listen to and work with the industry, partners and communities to shape our offering and support
- VisitScotland works together with tourism businesses to make tourism a success for everyone and ensure the industry continues to grow.
- The organisation employs 700 people and has offices and VisitScotland Information Centres across Scotland.
- Spending by tourists in Scotland generates around £12 billion of economic activity in the wider Scottish supply chain and contributes around £6 billion to Scottish GDP (in basic prices). This represents about 5% of total Scottish GDP.
- For VisitScotland’s press releases go to http://www.visitscotland.org/media_centre.aspx, tourism statistics and frequently asked questions go to http://www.visitscotland.org/
- Where possible, a Gaelic speaker will be made available for broadcast interviews on request (Far an tèid iarraidh, agus far am bheil sin nar comas, bruidhinnidh neach le Gàidhlig aig agallamh)
- For holiday information on Scotland go to www.visitscotland.com
- For information about business events in Scotland go to www.conventionscotland.com
Year of Innovation, Architecture and Design 2016 - 2016 will shine a spotlight on Scotland’s achievements in innovation, architecture and design through a wide-ranging, variety of new and existing activity.
- The Year of Innovation, Architecture and Design begins on 1 January 2016 and ends on 31 December 2016 and will build on the momentum generated by the current 2015 Year of Food and Drink as well as previous years including Homecoming Scotland 2014, the Year of Creative and the Year of Natural.
- Through a series of exciting events and activity, the year will showcase Scotland’s position as an “innovation nation”, its outstanding built heritage, and its thriving, internationally acclaimed creative industries sector.
- The Year of Innovation, Architecture and Design is a Scottish Government initiative being led by VisitScotland, and supported by a variety of partners including Scottish Government, Creative Scotland, Architecture + Design Scotland, Scottish Tourism Alliance, Scottish Enterprise, The National Trust for Scotland, Historic Environment Scotland, Highlands and Islands Enterprise and The Royal Incorporation of Architects in Scotland (RIAS).
- The Year of Innovation, Architecture and Design events fund is managed by EventScotland, part of VisitScotland’s Events Directorate.
- Join the conversation at #IAD2016
- Events can join the 2016 Year of Innovation, Architecture and Design Partner Programme throughout the year by visiting http://www.eventscotland.org/YIAD_partner_programme
