Touchdowns and till receipts:

Full houses and the fan economy

Since the first kick-off at Wembley in 2007, the games have generated an estimated £600 million in spectator spending.^[1] In 2024, major sporting events, including two regular-season NFL clashes, contributed around £230 million in direct economic benefit to London.^[2] The NFL alone accounted for £110 million in indirect economic impact across its three fixtures in 2023.^[3]

The impact extends far beyond the stadium gates. Last year, 60,000 international NFL fans spent on average £329 per head, per day during the London Games.^[4] That’s around three times as much as the average spend of an overnight visitor to the UK, according to last year’s ONS data.^[5]

Although there isn’t specific hotel data available from the NFL weekends, broader patterns during high-profile events illustrate the scale of the opportunity. In July 2025, London’s hotel occupancy hit 88.6%, its highest level since 2018, driven by the combined pull of Wimbledon, headline concerts and summer sporting fixtures. In the same month, the average cost of a hotel room soared to £234.58, and revenue per available room hit £207.93, both record highs.^[1]

These surges in footfall and occupancy create major opportunities for brands. At the UEFA Champions Festival, for example, 70% of attendees visited one or more brand activations across London.^[2] Such experiences not only drive immediate sales, but also strengthen consumer loyalty and open new avenues for brands to engage with international audiences.

How businesses can score a touchdown

For London’s hospitality and retail businesses, the challenge is to turn weekends like this into ongoing momentum. A major sporting event may only last a few days, but the commercial benefits can stick around for months if businesses plan ahead.

There’s huge value in brand association. The NFL Games, with their global audience, allow businesses to connect with international customers and tap into new market segments.

Adam Norman, Audit & Assurance Partner

Businesses can extend the event experience beyond the stadium with pop-ups, themed offers and collaborations with partner brands to keep fans engaged. After the event, content partnerships and social media activations can help businesses expand their reach well beyond local markets.

But the real opportunity lies in building long-term customer relationships.

Many of the visitors drawn in by major events are new to London’s brands, and that first purchase, booking or interaction is just the start. Capturing data at the point of sale, following up with personalised offers and creating loyalty incentives can turn one-time purchases into repeat customers.

Emma Benjamin, Price Bailey Partner with extensive hospitality experience 

The most successful operators use these insights to inform their financial and operational planning. By analysing sales patterns, staffing costs and cash flow data, businesses can identify which strategies deliver genuine returns, and which need refining before the next major event.