Lions fans not only attended their team's tour opener at Toll Stadium but opened their wallets while in Whangarei. Photo / NZME
Lions fans not only attended their team's tour opener at Toll Stadium but opened their wallets while in Whangarei. Photo / NZME
A report highlighting the estimated financial and economic benefits from the British and Irish Lions' tour opener in Whangarei is still being worked on, almost eight months after the game.
The Ministry of Business, Innovation and Employment is working on the report which was supposed to be released before Christmaslast year but got delayed by the general election and closure of offices during the festive season.
A draft is understood to be ready and the final version should be released in the first quarter of this year.
An estimated 2000 Lions' supporters visited Whangarei to watch their team's opening game against the New Zealand Provincial Barbarians at Toll Stadium on June 3.
Northland retailers raked in $658 million in sales in June - the highest earnings for that month since 2004 - and Whangarei ran out of bars for hundreds of rugby fans
One bar, McMorrissey's Irish Pub and Eatery on Vine St, raked in close to $60,000 in sales and others made similar bucks on match-day alone.
The accommodation sector also benefited from the Lions' tour, with Northland recording a 5.5 per cent increase in guest nights or 5000 extra visitors in June last year compared with the same month in 2016.
