Zhejiang’s “Zhejiang BA” kicks off in full swing: A ticket triggers a new boom in holiday cultural and tourism consumption

China News Service, Hangzhou, October 6 (Zhang Yuhuan) On the evening of October 1, there were crowds of people outside the Zhoushan Stadium. The aroma of barbecue from the "Fans Paradise" cultural and tourism market mixed with the sound of shouts floated in the night wind. Mr. Li, a fan from Shanghai, originally planned to arrive in Zhoushan in the middle of the holiday. He came to the island early after seeing news about the Zhejiang Urban Basketball League (Zhejiang Basketball League) event. "Watch the football game first, then eat seafood and watch the sea view in the next few days," he said.

In the stadium, the Zhoushan team and the Yongkang team fought fiercely for four quarters, and finally lost 79-98. Outside the competition venue, nearly 90 specialty stalls were lined up, offering seafood and delicacies, special cultural and creative products, and National Day-themed performances. That night, Zhoushan issued 50,000 yuan in consumer coupons to convert game viewing traffic into increased consumption.

On October 1st, Zhoushan team played against Yongkang team at home. Photo courtesy of Zhoushan Municipal Culture, Radio, Tourism and Sports Bureau

The value of a game ticket here far exceeds the face price itself. From October 1st to 7th, the Zhejiang BA Provincial Championship held the fourth and fifth rounds of the group stage, with 24 duels taking turns. Fans come to watch the football, and food, accommodation, transportation, travel and shopping are all started - this is the starting point of the "multiplier effect".

Judging from the game situation, on October 2, Wenzhou had a "double win" - Wenzhou team defeated Yuhuan team 82-68, and Ruian team defeated Lishui team 74-64 at home. On October 3, the Cangnan team defeated the Huzhou team 73-67, and the Ninghai team narrowly defeated the Haining team 81-79 in an away game. On October 4, the last champion Hangzhou team suffered an upset when they lost 81-84 at home to Jiangshan team, Tongxiang team lost to Yuyao team 55-88, and Taizhou team defeated Anji team 86-67.

On-site popularity is rising, and off-site consumption is rising simultaneously. The "multiplier effect" of football tickets is showing up in many places.

In Tongxiang, a football ticket has become the "key" to unlock urban consumption. Zhang Qi, a tourist from Ningbo, visited Puyuan Fashion Ancient Town in the morning, went to Puyuan Woolen Sweater Market to buy autumn and winter clothes in the afternoon, and watched a football match in the evening. "You can get discounts with your Zhejiang BA tickets. I have arranged all my family's autumn and winter clothes."

This consumption linkage is not a temporary initiative. The Tongxiang Municipal Culture, Radio, Television, Tourism and Sports Bureau collaborated with resources such as Puyuan Sweater Market and Tongxiang Service Area to launch a discount event with Zhejiang BA ticket stubs. During the National Day holiday, Puyuan Woolen Sweater Market just opened its first cashmere-themed commercial street, and many stores simultaneously launched discounts on ticket stubs, which had obvious traffic diversion effects. The Tongxiang Service Area of ​​Sutai Expressway also went into the arena to promote to fans and launched cultural and tourism consumer products covering the four major sectors of catering, beverages, entertainment and shopping on the "Gongfu Market" mini program. The passenger flow on the first day of National Day was close to 80,000.

Huzhou’s “ticket economy” is equally booming. Huzhou City’s cultural tourism system has launched 183 exclusive cultural tourism discounts in conjunction with the city’s hotels, scenic spots, restaurants, cafes, and cultural and sports venues. With home game ticket stubs, you can enjoy accommodation discounts, free admission to scenic spots, and full discounts on food and beverages. Huzhou has also launched the "Sports and Travel" platform, which combines Zhejiang BA competitions with holiday consumption season activities, attracting nearly a hundred cultural and sports merchants to settle in. Currently, a total of about 610,000 yuan in sports consumption coupons have been issued, driving more than 8 million yuan in direct consumption.

The discount of a ticket stub leverages the entire consumption chain. During this National Day holiday, Zhejiang has set up 419 second viewing sites across the province, integrating 75 food-themed tour routes and more than 1,900 ticket stub discounts, and gathering resources from more than a thousand cooperative merchants such as scenic spots and restaurants. Visitors can unlock multiple benefits including 233 core scenic spots with Zhejiang BA ticket stubs.

On October 4th, the Hangzhou team played against the Jiangshan team. Photo courtesy of Hangzhou Sports Bureau

These spending booms are no accidental “event bonus.”

According to data from the Zhejiang Provincial Sports Bureau, the first Zhejiang Basketball Association attracted nearly 1.79 million people to watch the game live, and the online live broadcast viewing volume exceeded 1 billion, driving comprehensive consumption of culture, tourism and sports to exceed 10 billion yuan. In the Ningbo competition area, the number of spectators in the stadium and the second viewing point alone exceeded 600,000, driving the comprehensive consumption of culture, business, tourism and sports to exceed 2.1 billion yuan.

This provincial championship has been further expanded, with the participating teams increasing from 22 to 28. 17 strong county teams compete with 11 municipal teams. The home and away double round-robin system makes the competition popular from the National Day to January of the following year. The competition schedule is not over halfway yet, and the consumption enthusiasm it brings is continuing to spread across the land of Zhijiang.

From the island market in Zhoushan to the sweater market in Tongxiang, from the "Tilvtong" to the 419 second viewing sites, a small game ticket is connecting multiple scenes of cultural tourism consumption in Zhejiang. When fans are willing to travel to a city for a game and plan a journey to watch a game, this little basketball is redefining the way to open a city.