Rugby Ball Wraps Up in Tokyo

Date: 09 November 2009

More than 12,000 people visited New Zealand’s giant Rugby Ball venue in Tokyo, with millions more seeing coverage of the Ball in Japanese media.

The Ball closed on the evening of Tuesday 4 November after being installed under the iconic Tokyo Tower in downtown Tokyo for six days.

Daily visitor numbers far exceeded those seen when the Ball was installed in London last November and in Paris in 2007: an average of 2,000 people per day passed through the Ball in Tokyo.

Media coverage of the Ball appeared across 16 Japanese television channels and in 25 newspapers, with total audience numbers of more than 82 million. Millions more heard or read about the Ball on radio and online.

Coverage of the Ball caused a spike in visitor numbers to Tourism New Zealand’s Japanese website. Visits went from an average of 1,500 visits per day to a peak of almost 8,000 visits on Sunday 1 November, the day following the Bledisloe Cup match played in Tokyo.

The Ball was installed in Tokyo to promote New Zealand as the host of the 2011 Rugby World Cup.

During the course of the six days, crowds of Japanese people cued around the block to view the audio visual display inside the Ball. Outside, they were entertained by Māori cultural group Te Arawa and many seized the opportunity to have photos taken with performers.

One visitor, who returned to the Ball for a second visit so she could go inside, said the audio visual had inspired her to return to New Zealand on holiday.

"I'd heard that there was an AV show, but the moving images that introduced all sorts of places in New Zealand were more incredible than I could have ever imagined," she said.

"I'm already thinking that next time I'd like to go with my focus as the World Cup and enjoy a lot of different aspects of New Zealand."

The Ball was opened by Prime Minister John Key on 28 October and was open to the public from 29 October.

Tourism New Zealand Chief Executive George Hickton said the Ball had done its job of boosting awareness of New Zealand in Japan and getting the Japanese excited about Rugby World Cup 2011.

> Watch video footage on You Tube
> Dowload images of the Ball in Tokyo
> Read Giant Rugby Ball Facts

Background:

Previous Results
Paris, France in 2007:
- During the 15 days the Ball was open to the public in Paris next to the Eiffel Tower, the Ball achieved a potential world-wide media reach of over 137 million people. 25,000 went through the Ball and saw the show.

London, England in 2008:
- During the eight days the Ball stood in Potters Fields Park next to London Bridge, 7,500 people went inside the Ball and experienced the AV display
- Over 200 million people from around the world had the opportunity to see the Ball on screens and in newspapers and magazines.

Source: Tourism New Zealand Feature