Floodlit test match generates £15m for Birmingham economy

Floodlit test cricket at Edgbaston

Warwickshire County Cricket Club has hailed England’s first ever day/night test match a great success – despite the game ending two days early.

Edgbaston accommodated 70,000 spectators across the three days of play, recording sell-outs on the second and third day and, despite the shortened match, the venue’s retail catering sales were also the highest ever for a non-Ashes test match.

The game is estimated to have generated almost £15m for the local economy.

Warwickshire chief executive Neil Snowball said: “One of the primary reasons for playing this Investec test match in day/night conditions was to support England in preparation for this winter’s Ashes test in Adelaide.

“However, to become the first UK venue to stage such a fixture has been an honour and builds on our reputation for innovation at Edgbaston.

“We also recognised the commercial opportunity and estimate that total ticket sales increased by 25% as a result of the change in format and the increased level of marketing. Hospitality sales were also ahead of forecast and our merchandise sales were up 30% when compared with the five-day test against Pakistan last year.”

The day/night game was also the 50th test match to be staged at the Birmingham ground, an occasion marked by a celebratory lap of honour around the field of play by some of the players to have taken part in those games.

Mr Snowball added: “The debate will go on as to whether we need day/night test cricket in this country. There are a number of test match grounds who are very good at selling test cricket in this country, unlike in other parts of the world so there is an argument to leave well alone.

“However, it was terrific to be able to make history by hosting the first ever day/night test and that final session on Saturday night with Stuart Broad taking his 384th wicket, Jimmy Anderson at his brilliant best and Toby Roland-Jones wrapping it up at 8.55pm in front of a fantastic crowd really was something special.

“From our perspective, the whole team at Edgbaston thoroughly enjoyed the experience of hosting the match and the combined attendance of nearly 70,000 shows that there is certainly an appetite.”

He said projections by the Birmingham Regional Observatory were that the fixture had been worth almost £15m to the local economy.

Boding well for the future – and with an eye on the Commonwealth Games (even if cricket won’t be one of the featured sports) – he added that the game had shown Birmingham could cope with the biggest of sporting events.

Looking ahead, Edgbaston hosts England in a test match against India in 2018, with Australia the visitors in 2019 for the home Ashes Series.

The Birmingham venue still has another showpiece event to look forward to before the end of the season, when it hosts the T20 Blast Finals Day on September 2.

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