REGIONAL PROFILES
GERMANY, SWITZERLAND & AUSTRIA POPULATION: 80.7m (DE); 8.2m (CH); 8.7m (AT) INTERNET USERS: 72.3m (DE); 7.3 m (CH); 7.3m (AT) GDP/CAPITA: $50,200 (DE); $61,400 (CH); $49,200 (AT) ACTIVE SMARTPHONES: 94.4m (DE); 11.7m (CH); 13.4m (AT)
W
ell located and with strong economies, the live entertainment markets in Germany, Switzerland and Austria are motoring. The success of well-researched new content strands, such as darts and eSports, show the markets still have room to grow, as audiences seek out high-quality productions. But what impact are the second-highest average ticket prices in Europe having on attendance? Some arenas are starting to sound alarm bells. In 2017, the venues surveyed in these three countries sold a total of 7,412,248 tickets to 1,269
REGIONAL MAP n = Germany, Switzerland & Austria
38
events, worth over €356million.
Attendance
Hosting a total of 1,269 events last year, music accounted for 41% of content in arenas, followed by sport at 23%, and family shows (17%). Miscellaneous events made up 11% of the programme, with comedy (7%), and dance (1%), making up the remainder. Average attendance – at 5,841 – was below the European average (6,036). Music drew the highest audiences, averaging 6,747 tickets (survey music average: 7,327) and making up 47% of all tickets sold; followed by sport (5,986 average and 24% of tickets); and miscellaneous events (5,578; 10%). Family shows were the only category to draw above-average ticket sales: 4,121 compared to European average, 3,828; they made up 12% of all tickets sold. Comedy averaged 5,240, and dance drew 2,171. Despite lower average attendance figures compared with other regions in Europe, almost all arenas here reported record-breaking years. Steve Schwenkglenks, general manager at Hamburg’s Barclaycard Arena (16,000 cap) is typical when he says: “2017 was our most successful and profitable year ever. “We have a great team at the arena that works hard, with passion and dedication, plus Hamburg attracts millions of visitors every year – many of whom combine sightseeing with a visit to one of our events.” Hannes Krosta, head of event management at the 15,000-capacity SAP Arena in Mannheim, also reports a record year: “With 117 shows and 922,906 visitors, we were ranked No. 3 arena by German magazine Stadionwelt.” In the east of the country, Matthias Kölmel from Arena Leipzig (12,000) says: “With 551,828 visitors at 136 events, we set a new benchmark for the arena. Among the events were Cirque du Soleil, Holiday on