Snedden, the CEO of Rugby NZ 2011 Ltd., described as “disingenuous and misleading” a New Zealand Herald investigation that indicated that the Rugby World Cup would cost NZ$1.2 billion and generate just NZ$700 million in direct economic returns. He stated that the Herald’s figures had “inexplicably” ignored almost NZ$270 million in revenue from ticket sales and incorrectly included stadium construction costs and upgrades to port and airport infrastructure.
“There are no 'white elephants',” Snedden said. “In most instances, Rugby World Cup 2011 has simply acted as a catalyst to accelerate improvements that would have occurred anyway, albeit possibly a little bit later. Future events such as the FIFA U-20 World Cup and Cricket World Cup 2015 will enjoy these benefits with no additional capital outlay.”
He added: “Then there is the potential for ongoing post-event economic benefits to New Zealand's tourism and business sectors if leveraging initiatives during the tournament bear fruit down the track. Studies on other major events, including the Sydney Olympics (in 2000) show these can be considerable.”
Reserve Bank of New Zealand governor Alan Bollard predicted in January that the Rugby World Cup would provide a NZ$700 million boost to the economy, giving the country’s GDP a 0.33% boost. “In straight dollar terms there will be an immediate and sizeable direct economic benefit,” he added. “The Reserve Bank recently estimated this at $700 million. A report commissioned by the NZRU (New Zealand Rugby Union) in 2005 put the figure at $500 million.”
Snedden continued: “The latter was based on 66,000 international visitors. Based on actual current offshore match ticket sales, we are now expecting at least 85,000 visitors, with an average 23-day length of stay. In that respect, these estimates, which are based on actual sales activity to date, look credible.”
