Cardiff is targeting a multi-million pound bonanza when the Heineken Cup final returns to the Welsh capital for the fourth time.
The 11th Heineken Cup final will be played on Saturday, 20 May, 2006 at the Millennium Stadium, Cardiff (kick-off 3.00 pm) - 10 years on from the inaugural final at Cardiff Arms Park between Toulouse and Cardiff in January, 1996.
Speaking on the second day of the ERC Clubs Conference in Cardiff involving delegates from the 44 clubs competing in the Heineken Cup (24) and European Challenge Cup (20), the tournament organisers, today (Thursday, 1 September) announced that European club rugby's showpiece match will be back on a Saturday after being staged on a Sunday for the last two seasons.
Over 3,000 tickets have already been sold for the 2006 Heineken Cup final with the big kick-off to the 11th tournament still 50 days away. The record Heineken Cup final attendance of 74,600 was set at the Millennium Stadium for the 2002 clash between Leicester Tigers and Munster, ERC is targeting another bumper crowd for Cardiff '06.
Meanwhile the 2005 final, won by Toulouse for a record third time in front of a Murrayfield crowd of 51,326, netted the Scottish economy £12m. The results of an independent economic impact study conducted into the Edinburgh final last May concluded that the event had been worth around £12 million to the Scottish economy, some £9.5 million of which had been spent in the area of the Scottish capital.
The study, conducted by Sports Marketing Surveys, interviewed some 800 spectators and those surveyed gave a big thumbs-up to the atmosphere, overall enjoyment of the Heineken Cup final and experience of Edinburgh for the final weekend itself. Other conclusions of the study were:
• Most spectators had booked their tickets three months in advance of the final
• Overall 34% of spectators stayed overnight with the majority staying in Edinburgh.
• 16% attending the final took time to see Edinburgh's tourist sites
• 24% took time to shop in Edinburgh spending on average £114 per person
"These results prove that the partnership approach we first adopted when we came to Cardiff in 2002, and have enhanced at every final since then, is working well to build the value of the Heineken Cup final for all its stakeholders," said Derek McGrath, ERC Chief Executive.
"The strategy we applied was to market not only our event, but also Edinburgh and Scotland, and we are preparing to roll out our Cardiff '06 campaign in partnership with the WRU, Millennium Stadium, City of Cardiff Council, Wales Tourist Board and the Welsh Assembly Government.
"With a Saturday final, we are confident of turning our 11th showpiece final into a weekend-long event that will be a festival of rugby for all sports fans.
Derek McGrath also outlined some other tournament changes for the new campaign.
CITING COMMISSIONER
A Citing Commissioner will be on duty at most televised Heineken Cup matches - 26 of the opening 36 matches of the tournament will be screened live by ERC's broadcast partners, Sky Sports, France Televisions, Sport+, RTE and Sky Italia.
The Citing Commissioner will have 50 hours in which to review tapes and statements of any incidents and will also be able to hear complaints from teams. This move matches the system in place in international rugby and comes after calls from clubs and fans alike for an improved procedure. However, ERC's Citing Officer will remain in place to judge any citing complaints lodged from matches not televised.
