While TV viewership and attendance for the 2012 Pro Bowl were down from the year before, the state’s visitor industry scored better tourism-related returns and is continuing the push to keep the game in Hawaii.
Bowl spectators this year dropped 2 percent to 48,423, according to figures released Friday by the Hawaii Tourism Authority. Event visitors dropped to 18,873 this year from the 21,204 who came in 2011. As many as 15,098 visitors at the 2012 Pro Bowl made the trip to Hawaii just for the event; however, that number also is down from 17,048 in 2011.
Visitors who came specifically to attend the Pro Bowl generated $25.3 million in visitor spending and $2.8 million in state taxes, the HTA said. In contrast, the 2011 game pumped $28.15 million in visitor spending and $3.07 million in state taxes into the economy.
The Nielsen national rating for the 2012 Pro Bowl was 7.3, down from the 7.7 rating it earned in 2011. However, the results were better than the 5.4 rating in 2009. The 2010 Pro Bowl was played in Miami.
An increase in bowl visitors who planned neighbor island trips, participated in activities and visited attractions boosted the state’s economy, offsetting declines in viewership and attendance, said Mike McCartney, HTA president and CEO.
This year, 91 percent of bowl visitors decided to attend the game prior to arriving in Hawaii as compared with 86 percent in 2011, according to HTA data. Also, 46 percent of 2012 bowl visitors took a neighbor island trip, compared with 28 percent in 2011, the HTA said. Eighty-five percent of 2012 visitors, up from 80 percent in 2011, said they visited attractions like the Polynesian Cultural Center, Diamond Head, Pearl Harbor, Sea Life Park and Waimea Valley.
Because of the game’s value to the state’s visitor industry, the HTA has been working to get a new NFL contract that would bring the game back to Oahu.
"While the Pro Bowl beyond 2012 is still undecided, we continue to be in conversations with the NFL and hope that we can maintain our long-standing relationship," McCartney said.
The game’s absence in 2010 caused the visitor industry to lament the loss of 18,487 visitors, $28.6 million in spending and $2.9 million in state taxes, the Pro Bowl’s impact in 2009. Hawaii’s domestic passenger counts also fell an average of 11.4 percent when the game was in Miami, HTA said.
McCartney said the event also gives NFL players and their families an opportunity to visit Hawaii and local residents a chance to watch a live NFL football game.
Still, the $4 million the state pays the NFL to host the game has in the past made some HTA members balk and initially moved Gov. Neil Abercrombie to question its value.
Keith Vieira, senior vice president and director of operations for Starwood Hotels & Resorts in Hawaii and French Polynesia, is among those who would like to see the game remain in Hawaii. However, he said the HTA should look for other sponsors to help it absorb some of the cost.
"It’s the single biggest event expenditure we have," Vieira said, "Hawaii should find a title sponsor and co-brand the event. Then we could reallocate the dollars into other sports marketing that would drive more visitors to Hawaii."
Vieira said he would like to see championship games held here in addition to the NFL all-star game.
"International scholastic events in swimming and beach volleyball would be a good fit," he said. "Regional football and baseball events could bring in teams from Asia and the U.S."
The value of showcasing Hawaii on TV and of the Pro Bowl Block Party, which draws attention to Waikiki, is enormous, albeit hard to track, said Brad Mettler, director of sales and marketing at Hyatt Regency Waikiki Beach Resort and Spa.
"In terms of national attention and putting Hawaii in the spotlight, it’s a great event," Mettler said. "I would rather have it than not have it."
HTA estimates that the publicity value of the 2012 Pro Bowl, which reached 12.5 million North American TV viewers, was $271.6 million, and post-game publicity totaled $26 million.
The NFL’s commitment to Hawaii exceeds HTA’s $4 million investment, McCartney said.
The NFL this year donated $100,000 to more than 20 local nonprofit organizations and assisted in building a playground for Hawaii’s youth, he said.
While in Hawaii the NFL also hired local businesses and pumped money into venues throughout the community where events were held, McCartney said.
