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Online Travel Companies See Surge in Sports Tourism in India - India Report
04.06.2024 - 03:31 / skift.com / Thomas Cook / Paris Olympics / Bulbul Dhawan
Sports tourism is on a rise in India, with the country’s sports tourism market expected to be valued at nearly $53 billion in 2033, according to a report released by market research firm Future Market Insights last year. The firm expects the industry to grow at an annual rate of 17.1% from its valuation of $11 billion in 2023.
Major sporting events, including the cricket T20 World Cup series, Wimbledon, and the 2024 Olympics are coming soon. These tournaments are popular among sport enthusiasts in India, and as the spending power of Indian travelers is increasing, there seems to be an increased interest in seeing them live.
Skift reached out to online travel companies to understand the trends that they are seeing:
Rajeev Kale – President and Country Head, Holidays, MICE, Visa at Thomas Cook (India) Limited: “Our consumer data trends for 2024 highlight a 40% surge in demand for big-ticket global sporting events. Topping the list is the cricket World Cup series, Wimbledon, the Olympics, and F1. We have received about 200 queries including confirmed group bookings for the anticipated India-Pakistan cricket match in New York.”
Kale said that these events play a key role in influencing travel decisions, with 23% of consumers taking them into account while choosing destinations.
“What is truly encouraging is that Indians are clearly displaying a spend appetite for such sporting extravaganzas.”
Daniel D’Souza – President and Country Head at Holidays, SOTC Travel: Sports tourism is becoming a major driver for the Indian market, said D’Souza. “The demand is increasing by 20-35%. Live attendance is an exciting and desirable experience for Indian travelers, evident by their dominance in overseas ticket purchases for major sporting events such as cricket, Wimbledon and Australian Open in lawn tennis, and football.”
D’Souza added that sports tourism used to be a niche market in India previously, but is now attracting a wider audience, including high net worth individuals and ultra high net worth individuals, families, and young Indians across Tier 1 and Tier 2 cities.
Santosh Kumar – Country Manager for India, Sri Lanka, Maldives and Indonesia at Booking.com: “Indian sports fans are traveling the world to watch their favorite sporting events. According to our travel trends for 2024, 73% of Indian travelers are planning to travel internationally for sporting events this year. We are seeing this passion translating into real action with our accommodation search data revealing a rise in searches for host destinations.”
Kumar shared that London, Paris, and New York are among the top 10 most searched destinations by Indians – corresponding with events like Wimbledon Championships, Paris 2024 Olympics, and the ICC
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