The Johannesburg Tourism Company has signed a destination marketing collaboration with the Gauteng Central Lions cricket club in a bid to boost sports tourism in the region.

The initiative aims to increase visitor in-flows, creating opportunities for jobs and SMMEs, and creating a favourable image for the destination.

The collaboration will be guided by a Memorandum of Understanding (MoU), underpinned by a Service Level Agreement, which will be entered into between the two parties.

“It’s wonderful when good plans come together – but even more thrilling when potentially great partnerships are forged in the process. The announcement has been a long time coming, with talks, negotiations and due diligence dating back as far as April 2021 between the Lions Cricket Club and the Johannesburg Tourism Company,” said MMC for Economic Development at the City of Johannesburg, Nomoya Mnisi.

The three-year MoU is underpinned by the following elements:

• Destination brand awareness to reposition Johannesburg and gain competitive edge.
• Destination reputation management to create a positive image for the city.
• Relief on joint operations committee costs on event days.
• Relief on stadium tower lights to increase frequency of evening matches.
• To attract more events into the 32 000-seat Wanderers Stadium.

The successful hosting of a sports tourism event can lead to substantial increases in visitation and tourism revenue.

“As a new identified niche area in our strategy, sports tourism is gaining momentum in Johannesburg and has been identified as providing an exciting way of marketing the city as a preferred tourist destination,” added Mnisi.

Wanderers, the stadium of the Gauteng Central Lions, is situated in the golden triangle of retail in Africa – Sandton, Melrose Arch and Rosebank.