Wimbledon fans turn out in record numbers despite downturn 25/06/2009 |
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Tennis fans turned out in record numbers for the first two days of Wimbledon, their love for the sport undeterred by the global financial uncertainty that has forced many people to rein in their spending.
Even Bank of England governor Mervyn King put rescuing the economy from recession to one side as he watched local teenage hopeful Laura Robson lose her first round match at the start of the week.
Nearly 43,000 people attended the opening day's play at the All England Club, a record number for the first Monday of the two-week tournament, with almost 46,000 turning up Tuesday to set a record for second-day attendance.
"I'd probably eat beans on toast to be able to afford the ticket but at least I'd still keep it up," said 49-year-old architect and property developer Ian Hamilton, who had a ticket for Centre Court on the second day.
The number of hopefuls queuing for the 7,500 tickets available at the turnstiles each day also increased dramatically on both days -- topping more than 20,000 Tuesday, up from 14,740 on the same day last year, said the organisers.
AFFORDABLE PRICES
Wimbledon's always affordable ticket prices may have helped boost the tournament's recession-time appeal.
With ground passes for the first week at 20 pounds a day and a Centre Court seat on men's final day costing 100 pounds, they are lower than many other big sporting events.
Tucking into a bowl of strawberries and cream, retired Londoner Roz Duggan said the fact spectators can make a full day of it makes the tickets even better value.
"Once you're here you are here all day so you can make as much of the money as you want," she said. "I think it is actually quite good value for money... it is a special day out."
Even the most expensive tickets remained in demand, with last month's sale of 2,500 five-year Centre Court debentures significantly oversubscribed despite costing 27,750 pounds each.
The club said it was not immune to the general financial climate and had seen demand for corporate hospitality soften this year as companies cut down on luxury items.
But not being too reliant on big sponsorship deals or corporate spending -- less than eight percent of Centre and Court One seats are used for hospitality -- had prevented the downturn having a big financial impact, the club added.
SPENDING UP
It is not just ticket sales that have proved resilient to the downturn, however, with the spending continuing inside the grounds of the All England Club as people splash out on Wimbledon merchandise as a memento of their day.
The Wimbledon shop, where towels like those used by the players on court will set you back 25 pounds, said it had seen an overall "significant" increase in sales so far, with the average amount spent by customers also up on last year.
Although the club allows people to bring their own food and a limited amount of alcohol into the grounds, helping visitors keep costs down, many choose not to as the long queues to buy strawberries and cream at 2.25 pounds a bowl testify.
Crowds of people also mulled around the drinks tents where they forked out between 53 and 75 pounds for a bottle of champagne, and nearly 20 pounds for a jug of Pimms.
"Part of the event is to enjoy what is on offer," Hamilton added as he sipped his pint of lager. "Why not have the strawberries and cream and the Pimms and indulge in everything that is going on?"
(Source: Reuters)
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