Premier pitches NFL for Queensland

Published Tuesday, 11 March, 2014 at 10:22 AM

Premier
The Honourable Campbell Newman

National Football League (NFL) chiefs have been invited to tour Queensland’s sporting facilities, during a meeting with Premier Campbell Newman in New York.

Mr Newman said potentially hosting an NFL match in Queensland for the first time would provide a significant tourism boost and deliver on the election promise to boost the sector as one of the four pillars of the economy.

“It would be fantastic to see Queensland’s home-grown National Football League superstar, Jesse Williams, play in front of a home-crowd,” Mr Newman said.

“Jesse’s drafting by this year’s National Football League Super Bowl XLVIII champions, the Seattle Seahawks, generated significant interest here in Queensland.

“Hosting a National Football League match in Queensland would deliver significant dollars for the tourism industry, attracting visitors from interstate and overseas as well as showcasing the state to NFL fans around the world.

“We are working hard to maximise visitor numbers to the State and achieve our goal of doubling annual overnight visitor expenditure from $15 billion in 2010 to $30 billion by 2020.

“Tourism was ignored and brought to its knees by the former Labor Government, but it has been bouncing back since the election.”

Mr Newman said the National Football League was the most watched sport in the US, broadcast internationally and there was interest amongst the league to take more games overseas.

“The US is Queensland’s fifth largest international market and in the year to September 2013 160,000 Americans visited Queensland,” he said.

“The Newman Government through Tourism and Events Queensland is proactive in attracting major events to Queensland and has a proven track record of success.

“Last financial year, major events supported by TEQ delivered an economic impact of $344 million for the state.”

Mr Newman met NFL representatives as part of his trade mission to Los Angeles, New York and Houston.

[ENDS] 10 March 2014 US time

Audio of the Premier's media conference is available here: https://soundcloud.com/qldpremier/usa-trade-mission-nfl-coming

Media Contact: Premier’s Office 3719 7000