SA20 reveals tournament's huge contribution towards South African economy

The inaugural season of SA20 contributed towards a significant financial impact on South Africa's economy.

An Economic Impact Assessment, commissioned by the League, highlighted the positive effect the 33-match competition had on Gross Domestic Product (GDP), household income, employment and direct expenditure.

The first year of South Africa's premier T20 league was a spectacular success; a summer of unprecedented attendance numbers across the six host venues, world-class cricket, a renewed excitement and interest for domestic cricket and investment by global cricket franchise brands.

Some key numbers from the study include:

- R1.4 billion direct expenditure into South Africa
- 8223 annualised employment opportunities created
- R4.1bn contributed to South Africa’s GDP
- R958m contributed to household income

The investment by the teams into their franchises across the six host cities also led to a substantial stimulus on the local communities. The impact from the Indian Premier League-owned teams was bigger than a financial commitment, with players, staff, venues and vendors benefitting from their global experience and expertise in building the world's most successful cricket league. As the anticipation for Season 2 grows, the goal is for the League to continue to be a catalyst that positively impacts as many South Africans as possible.

SA20 League Commissioner, Graeme Smith, says a key strategic objective of the League is to make a positive social impact on South African cricket and the wider economic ecosystem in the country.

"When we set out to find suitable franchises to partner with SA20, our main goal was to ensure a significant economic investment into the League and South African cricket, but an event such as this has a far wider impact," said the former Proteas skipper.

"The results from the Economic Impact Assessment are a true testament to the legacy we want to create as a League. Delivering a world-class cricket product is our key focus but the knock-on effects, which include investment into the economy, job opportunities, profiling South Africa as a tourist destination in key source markets, have been fantastic. We hope to grow from strength to strength over the next number of years."

The inaugural season was a big hit with South African fans, who came out in their numbers to support their favourite teams, with cricket taking centre stage as the highlight of the summer.

A remarkable 74% of tickets were sold across all the matches, including six sold-out matches and the final. This positive uptake from the first year bodes well for the second season, which is scheduled to start on 10 January 2024.