$7m football windfall for Wellington

Wellington is expected to reap a $7 million windfall from Saturday's World Cup football qualifier between New Zealand and Bahrain.

About 15,000 visitors to the city are among 35,500 people who have bought tickets to the game, which offers New Zealand the opportunity to snag a place in the World Cup finals for the first time in 27 years.

Wellington City Council said the match was shaping up to be the equivalent of an international, sell-out rugby game.

The economic return was likely to be similar to that of the visit of American club LA Galaxy, featuring star David Beckham, with the figure most likely sitting above $7 million, said events manager John Dawson.