Adelaide 500 will be a measure of success for the state government | Kathryn Bermingham
The return of Adelaide’s iconic car race will be a yardstick to measure the state government’s first year in office, writes Kathryn Bermingham.
Opinion
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There’s a lot riding on this weekend’s Adelaide 500 for the state government.
No matter how well it goes, the return of the iconic car race will be a yardstick to measure the success of Labor’s first year in office.
Up until this point, preparations have been smooth.
A star-studded line-up is also set to perform on stage at the event, which will be headlined by US rock group The Killers and feature a number of other big names.
Tickets were set at an affordable price, which was a smart move that will encourage more families to attend. A mammoth, months-long effort to prepare the track and grandstand has finished on schedule.
And, in a lucky break, a perfect four days of sun are forecast.
From an observer’s point of view, at least, organisers have not encountered any major hiccups. The stage is set.
But it’s not over yet.
When the race goes ahead, the government will have delivered on its commitment to bring back the Adelaide 500.
However, for the significant investment taxpayers have made to hold the event (exactly how much it will cost has not been disclosed), the economic benefit should be substantial.
A key indicator of exactly how successful the return of the car race has been will be how many people attend.
Asked at a June press conference what would be considered a “pass mark” for crowd numbers, Premier Peter Malinauskas said: “We want to make sure that we crack 200,000 across the festival”.
That was a very safe figure. In years gone by, 200,000 fans would have been a disappointing outcome.
In 2020, 206,000 people attended across the four-days – the smallest crowd since 2002 and enough to justify the Liberal government’s decision to axe the race.
At least 273,500 attended in 2018, and attendances peaked in 2013, when 286,500 spectators turned out and rock legends KISS performed at the post-race concert.
Event organisers have not revealed exactly how many tickets have been bought this year.
But they said sales were “strong” and, based on trends, attendance is expected to be more than 25 per cent higher than in 2020.
That would put crowd attendance at more than 250,000 – a reasonable bar to set for success.
The Labor government has put a strong focus on luring major events to the state as a strategy to stimulate the economy.
It has recently locked in the AFL Magic Round and the LIV Golf tour for next year.
For that strategy to be effective, it must be able to demonstrate that the investment is paying off for the hospitality and tourism sectors as they recover from the Covid-19 downturn.
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