2019 Men’s Cricket World Cup most watched ever, providing unprecedented global coverage for Trent Bridge and Nottingham

Data released by the International Cricket Council (ICC) reveals that the 2019 Men’s Cricket World Cup, which took place throughout May – July 2019, was the most watched ICC event ever, with a global cumulative average audience of 1.6bn viewers across more than 200 territories. The event amassed a record 13.7 billion global viewing hours, a 72% increase from the 2015 Cricket World Cup.

Nottingham’s Trent Bridge Cricket Ground hosted five matches as part of the event, welcoming around 87,500 people, with 70,000 visiting the Fanzone in Old Market Square. Alongside the immediate economic boost from these visitors via ticket sales and spending on merchandise, food and drink, accommodation and transport, the event offered unprecedented global exposure for the city.

Nottingham stakeholders worked hard to maximise the trade and tourism opportunities created by the tournament. Nottingham City Council and Marketing NG commissioned a 30-second vignette showcasing Nottingham as a world-class tourist destination, featuring Nottinghamshire landmarks and icons including Trent Bridge, Wollaton Hall, Newstead Abbey, Sherwood Forest, Sat Bains and Paul Smith, which aimed to inspire prospective tourists around the globe to consider a visit to the region. The video was shown on large screens at matches, on social advertising and broadcast worldwide during all of the matches at Trent Bridge to a global cumulative average audience of 1.6bn, shattering previous ICC Men’s Cricket World Cup digital and TV viewership records.

To enhance visitor experience, Visit Nottinghamshire (part of Marketing NG) also prepared a dedicated section on their website for cricket spectators, where they could find information about how to get to Trent Bridge, explore nearby attractions, places of interest and top eateries. A selection of special offers from local businesses was also available for cricket fans to take advantage of.

Kinga Kapias, Acting Marketing and Communications Manager at Visit Nottinghamshire, said:

“England’s dramatic first ever win in the ICC Men’s Cricket World Cup 2019 goes much further than sporting glory. Nottingham’s economy has enjoyed a massive windfall, not only in the short-term with the boost to local retail, hospitality and transport sectors thanks to the influx of visitors to Trent Bridge and the Fanzone, but we’ve also had some unprecedented global exposure as a tourist destination. We are optimistic that this will lead to increased visitor numbers in the future as well as bringing us to the attention of investors. The impact of sporting events upon Nottingham’s economy should not be underestimated, and we are very much looking forward hosting future global sporting events.”

Cllr David Trimble, portfolio holder for Leisure and Culture at Nottingham City Council, said:

“It’s fantastic to hear that Nottingham was a part of the most watched ICC event ever. We maximised every possible opportunity to ensure Nottingham’s profile was raised throughout the tournament. Our 30-second TV clip aired to millions of people at the beginning of each match, highlighting our city as a vibrant and diverse destination for people to visit, live and study. It’s encouraging to see that online searches for Nottingham reached a five-year peak last summer, indicating that the economic impact of the tournament on our city’s attractions, businesses and universities isn’t over yet.”

Michael Temple, Commercial Director at Nottinghamshire County Cricket Club, said:

“We knew that being a World Cup host venue represented a priceless opportunity to raise the profile, not only of our venue, but also our city, our borough and our county. It did that, and we can be proud – as a community – that the experience of World Cup cricket was rated by those who attended to have been at its best at Trent Bridge. If cricket takes the opportunity provided by the profile England’s victory has given to our sport, the benefits to the local area – both in terms of active people and financial – will be significant. That is our next challenge.”

Posted on 13 January 2020

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Sophie Milne

A member of the Marketing and Communications team at Marketing NG, Sophie manages press and PR. This includes writing and distributing press releases, arranging FAM trips, liaising with the media to gain press coverage for Nottingham/shire and Marketing NG, monitoring the news and ensuring colleagues are kept up to date with news stories and doing media interviews.