Accor has come together with Kylian Mbappé, French professional footballer and catalyst for youth empowerment, to take the latter’s Inspired by KM community support activities further through its extensive hospitality network.
The partnership is a long-term commitment that will see Accor provide accommodation support and logistical assistance to Inspired by KM activities.
At the same time, Mbappé will leverage Accor’s expansive reach through awareness activations across the company’s group channels, notably via its ALL-Accor Live Limitless loyalty and distribution platform.
The strategic collaboration will enrich ALL-Accor Live Limitless’s appeal, harnessing Mbappé’s notable influence to attract members and guests while staying true to Accor’s core values.
Mbappé, president of Inspired by KM, said: “Together, we can make a meaningful difference and foster opportunities for a promising future. Our partnership embodies sharing and transmission, making us ambassadors for the younger generation worldwide.”
Sébastien Bazin, chairman & CEO, Accor, underlined the “transformative power of hospitality to create positive change”.
“Our partnership with Kylian Mbappé aligns perfectly with our commitment to making a difference in the communities we serve,” said Bazin.
He brings a wealth of experience to the role having worked with Accor, Wanda Hotels & Resorts, Starwood Hotels & Resorts and Yongle Huazhu.
Collinson International, the owner and operator of Priority Pass and LoungeKey, has released its latest global research report, The Value of Sports and Music Tourism, that explores the travel and spending habits of sports and music event travellers.
With sports and music tourism booming and event travellers having high aspirations, the report highlights a huge opportunity for businesses to tap into this growing segment of travellers.
The new research revealed that sports fans are the biggest spenders globally in comparison to those travelling for music events; 57% of Asia-Pacific’s sports enthusiasts are spending more than US$500 per trip, per person.
Sports and music tourism is seeing huge growth. In 2023, sports tourism was valued at US$564.7 billion and is expected to almost double in value to US$1.33 trillion by 2032.1 Similarly, music tourism is expected to see huge growth, forecasted to reach US$13.8 billion by 2032.
This is being driven by three main components: events, exposure, and experience.
With more sports and music events, fans have more choice of destinations, while the internationalisation of new and existing sports leagues through TV and streaming has encouraged fans to travel, and music fans are finding it more cost-effective to see an artist abroad. As for experience, after years of Covid-19 travel restrictions, live fans are back and wanting new, enhanced experiences.
In Asia-Pacific, of those that travel to an event by plane, more than four-fifths (85%) have travelled for sports and 74% for music in the past three years or plan to do so in the coming 12 months. Of these travellers, over half (53%) travel more than once a year with 19% attending three or more events annually.
Spending habits
Sports fans are the biggest spenders globally, with 57% from Asia-Pacific exceeding US$500 per trip. Notably, 12% of respondents in Asia-Pacific spend more than US$2,000 per trip. Globally, the 25-34 age group spends the most overall, with a third (33%) exceeding US$1,000 for sports and 31% for music events.
The typical spend for event travellers globally at airports is US$100 (44%) but this varies considerably with those travelling for basketball (30%), Formula 1 (32%) and the Olympics (31%) prepared to spend US$200 or more. As for those travelling for music, 25% are prepared to spend US$200 or above.
About 82% of Asia-Pacific sports and music fans have travelled to a new city or country to watch their favourite team or artist and of those, 28% said they have returned to these new cities/countries – with a further 31% planning to return. This presents huge economic growth opportunities for local businesses within these destinations, particularly where repeat business can be identified ahead of time.
Elevated airport experiences
Those travelling to see their favourite sports team or artist are looking for more premium travel experiences, which means they are more likely to take advantage of airport experiences.
More than half (52%) of Asia-Pacific sports and music fans have used airport experiences when travelling for an event, which includes visiting an airport lounge (34%), gaming lounges (15%), sleep pods (16%) and spas (13%).
The top reasons Asia-Pacific fans visit an airport lounge is to relax and unwind before or after watching their favourite team/artist (58% for sports and enjoying at the airport.
Around 65% of Asia-Pacific event travellers participate in customer engagement and loyalty programmes. Many have joined customer engagement and loyalty programmes that offer points/miles (46%) or discounts on flights (50%), tickets (39%) and accommodation (38%). Over a third (39%) of Asia-Pacific event travellers would choose a payment card that offered exclusive travel benefits such as access to airport lounges, travel insurance (42%), and an event package (42%) that includes flights, accommodation, transfers and tickets.
Airport lounge access is a popular travel benefit through payment cards, particularly for travellers from India (43%), Hong Kong, the UAE, Australia (all 41%), Singapore (40%) Germany (34%), the UK (33%) and Brazil (32%).
Christopher Evans, CEO of Collinson International, owner and operator of Priority Pass, shared: “Fans are by definition synonymous with loyalty. This new research shows the high value they place on travel benefits. Great news for the travel industry and for those businesses targeting frequent travellers providing the opportunity to capitalise on the rise of event tourism by offering the travel benefits fans crave. In return, they will see the advantage of being top-of-mind and wallet with these frequent travellers, boosting engagement, building loyalty, and driving additional cross-border spend.”
“Sports and music events fuel wanderlust, taking travellers to every corner of the globe. As the appetite for sports and music tourism grows across Asia-Pacific, significant opportunities for businesses are opening up,” noted Todd Handcock, global chief commercial officer and Asia Pacific president, Collinson International.
Handcock continued: “This is particularly true for the travel sector, with Asia-Pacific travellers being some of the highest spenders globally; as well as financial services organisations, with the latter witnessing significant shifts driven by technological advancements, evolving consumer expectations, and disruptive competitors. Brands who can unlock the power and influence of sports and music-related rewards will position themselves well to benefit from higher customer engagement and retention.”
Read the full report here.