CPL: Trinidad and Tobago earned $55m from 2023 tourneys

THE Republic Bank Caribbean Premier League (CPL) and Massy Women’s Caribbean Premier League (WCPL) created an economic impact of US$55,258,616 for Trinidad and Tobago during the 2023 tournament, a 15 per cent increase from the total earned in 2022.

There were six men’s matches and four women’s matches in Trinidad between September 5 and 10 with games taking place at the Queen’s Park Oval and Brian Lara Cricket Academy, including the WCPL final.

The total event impact is calculated by world renowned research organisation, YouGov Sport. The figure is based on organiser spend, visitor spend and media value for TT.

A CPL media release on April 9, said, “The tournament filled 13,961 hotel rooms in Trinidad, made up by CPL’s significant cohort which included players; coaches; administrators; TV and media crews; team owner groups; league and franchise event management teams; alongside overseas visitors who arrived to watch the games.

“A large part of the total economic impact figure stems from the money spent by these overseas visitors who spend time in TT during the event.”

TT also benefited from the tournament being broadcast around the world with CPL’s audience reaching 853.5 million viewers in 2023. As always, the tournament worked closely with the local tourism authorities to create world class content, which highlighted the unique sports tourism opportunities that TT has to offer.

These exclusive features and vignettes were shown during the CPL matches, further promoting the tourism message.

CPL CEO Pete Russell said, “History was created in TT in 2023 when the Barbados Royals won an expanded WCPL in front of a sell-out crowd at the Brian Lara Cricket Academy and it was fantastic to once again be somewhere that is the beating heart of CPL cricket. ”

Also weighing in on the league’s impact was Minister of Sport and Community Development Shamfa Cudjoe-Lewis. She said, “Once again, the Caribbean Premier League had demonstrated its remarkable impact on generating economic activity in TT.

CPL’s statistics underscore the league’s pivotal role in advancing and developing our nation’s sport tourism portfolio.

The Government of TT, through the Ministry of Sport and Community Development and the Sports Company of TT (SporTT), looks forward to the return of the CPL in 2024, as we remain committed to harnessing the power of sport to drive economic growth and fostering community development across the nation.”