Visitors spend big during the World Cup. Courtesy of FIFA.com

Foreign Visa card spending reached USD$312 million (R2.4 billion) during the lead-up to and during the 2010 FIFA World Cup™ in South Africa, giving a big boost to the South African economy.

The data shows that during the period leading up to the kickoff of the World Cup and the end of the tournament (1 June to 11 July), spending by international visitors in South Africa on Visa-branded payment cards exceeded US$312 million. This is an increase of 70% or US$128 million from US$184 million during the same period in 2009.

The number of transactions from 1 June to 11 July was 2.2 million (55,000 per day on average), up 79% from approximately 1.2 million (30,000 a day on average) during the same 41 days in 2009.
Visa spending data indicates:

• The United States (19.05%), followed by the United Kingdom (19.03%), Australia (4.7%), Brazil (4.2%) and France (3.4%) have been the strongest contributors to visitor spending to date. These five countries alone accounted for 51% of spending.

• Over 90% of spending was in typical leisure and business travel categories - accommodation, restaurants, retail, auto rental and air travel.

• Among the top 25 countries by spending, the largest increase was from Mexico where cardholders spent US$7.5 million during the World Cup period, compared with US$131,000 in the same period the year before.

• The biggest spenders from the African continent were Mozambique (US$8.1 million), Botswana (US$7.47 million) and Angola (US$6.5 million).

"The World Cup has been an outstanding success for football and for South Africa,” said Antonio Lucio, Chief Marketing Officer at Visa. Inc. “It has definitely been a spectacular success for the local economy and businesses. The foreign visitors came in force and spent in force with their Visa cards.

"The direct economic benefit to date in 2010 has been significant and the spending on Visa cards by foreigners confirms the immediate economic benefits of hosting major international events."