South Africa scores with Soccerex
Tammy O'Reilly
1 November 2006
The world's largest soccer exhibition, Soccerex, will be staged in South Africa for the next three years.
Winning the right to host the event is a major coup for the country, as it will bring soccer associations, football clubs, businesses and the media from all over the world to Gauteng province from November 2007 to 2009. It will also boost the country's build-up to the 2010 Fifa World Cup.
Now in its tenth year, Soccerex is the only convention that gives exhibitors and delegates the opportunity to network with suppliers, manufacturers, key buyers and decision-makers in international football. It attracts football legends, top football clubs and football playing nations.
Soccerex 2006 is taking place in Dubai, where more than 3 000 delegates from the soccer fraternity are expected to attend along with 250 exhibitors from 75 countries. There will be a global exhibition, daily conference sessions and a football match festival.
Roughly R5-billion in business deals were negotiated at Soccerex 2005. By the time Soccerex comes to SA, this figure is expected to jump to R7-billion.
"Football is a multibillion-dollar industry," said Soccerex chairman Tony Martin. "Just to give you and indication, of all the sports products in the world purchased, 75% of them are for football. This is a massive business, and the benefits to the Gauteng economy will be huge."
It is projected that Soccerex will inject more than R700-million into Gauteng's economy as well as give the province billions of rands worth of media coverage.
"This marks yet another important milestone in our endeavours to build the Gauteng city region as a premier destination for competitive sport," said Gauteng finance MEC Paul Mashatile.
"This is a priority, not just because the people of Gauteng are passionate about sport, but also because of the significant economic benefits which accrue from the hosting of such
events."
Source: City of Johannesburg
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