Great expectations: NRW tourism industry for the 2024 European Football Championships
The tourism industry in North Rhine-Westphalia is looking forward to the 2024 European Football Championships and the draw for the preliminary rounds this Saturday with great expectations. "In view of the many guests who will be coming, we expect demand to increase, although this will largely depend on the draw and therefore on the teams playing in NRW," said Tonia Haag, spokesperson for the NRW tourism umbrella organization, dpa.
"If, for example, the Netherlands play in NRW, we expect demand to be significantly higher than for the Slovenian team," she explained. Before and after the match days, however, the host cities expect fully booked hotel capacities with spillover effects into the surrounding area. In the case of the Netherlands, for example, countless day visitors are likely to be added.
With Dortmund, Gelsenkirchen, Düsseldorf and Cologne, NRW will host four of the ten venues for the 2024 European Football Championship (June 14 to July 14) in Germany. This means that 20 of the 51 matches will be played in Germany's most populous federal state. These include a quarter-final in Düsseldorf and a semi-final in Dortmund. This Saturday, the tournament will take shape with the draw for the preliminary round groups.
As the matches in the individual groups will all take place in NRW, it is expected that fans will not change hotels and will stay there for several nights. The retail and catering sectors are also likely to benefit from the demand. Düsseldorf will also act as a UEFA contact point for celebrities and state guests, which will attract attention, explained Haag.
Whether 2024 will be a record year for the NRW tourism industry remains to be seen. "But of course we hope that guests traveling to the European Championships will get to know and appreciate North Rhine-Westphalia as a travel destination and come back later or recommend North Rhine-Westphalia to others, so that we can also benefit from the European Championships in the medium and long term," explained the umbrella organization's spokesperson.
The European Championships will play a role in tourism advertising, but advertising will not be limited to the European Championships next year. The tourism umbrella organization is planning joint advertising with the host cities and other tourism associations before, during and after the soccer tournament in the countries that will be playing in NRW.
The tourism industry in North Rhine-Westphalia is anticipating a surge in soccer fans during the 2024 European Football Championships, as the region will host four of the ten venues for the tournament. The presence of popular teams like the Netherlands is expected to significantly boost tourism, with fans likely to stay for multiple nights and explore retail and catering options.
Source: www.dpa.com
