Couriers can expect windfall from 2010 ticket distribution

KEVIN MAYHEW THE DISTRIBUTION of millions of tickets locally and abroad for the 2010 Soccer World Cup in South Africa could present the local courier industry with a windfall. The commercial director of the World Cup Cricket 2003 organising committee, Ian Smith, said the courier and freight element of the much smaller international cricket event amounted to about R5m. The major portion of this was the distribution of the tickets. Cricket kit and additional specialist training equipment requirements of some teams also required importation and transportation to different venues. “I do not know about the requirements for specialist training equipment for soccer, but if the soccer Bid Company opts for a similar model for ticket distribution that we used then it could be significant,” Smith said. According to an impact report undertaken for the South African 2010 Soccer World Cup Bid Company by business advisers Grant Thornton, about 2,72 million tickets with a total value of about R4,6bn are expected to be sold for the 2010 event. Smith added that a presentation of the ticket sales and distribution model used in the international cricket showcase was made to the Soccer Bid Committee last year when it was assembling the elements of its ultimately successful bid presentation. DHL secured the contract for the World Cup Cricket 2003. The Bid Company said the tender requirements and procedures for all elements of staging the 2010 Soccer World Cup would be communicated to potential participants and the media in due course.