Cape Town events deliver over R5 billion for local economy

07 July 2026

The City of Cape Town’s Events Permit Office processed 1 540 event permit applications in the 2025/26 financial year. The period also delivered strong spectator attendance, job opportunities and economic activity opportunities, reinforcing Cape Town’s position as Africa’s leading events destination.

From the 1 540 event applications received, the Events Permit Office approved 983 event permits, including several major international events featuring the Springboks, Bafana Bafana, the Proteas Women and the Springbok Women.

These events attracted around 4,1 million spectators and participants, demonstrating the scale and impact of Cape Town’s events industry. 

Some permit applications were declined due to non-compliance, while others were deemed not to require a permit.

The approved events, which ranged from major international sporting fixtures and large-scale festivals to community, cultural and lifestyle gatherings, generated significant economic activity while creating jobs, attracting visitors and showcasing Cape Town to a global audience.

A review of 30 top events found that they contributed more than R5 billion to the local economy. Six flagship events alone accounted for approximately R4,5 billion in economic impact.

City of Cape Town-supported events also continued to create employment opportunities. An assessment of 20 events found that they generated over 31 000 temporary and permanent jobs, highlighting the important role the events sector plays in supporting livelihoods and driving economic growth.

‘Cape Town continues to prove that it is one of the world’s premier events destinations. Every event hosted in our city creates opportunities for local businesses, supports jobs, attracts visitors and showcases everything that makes Cape Town a world-class destination. The City’s Events Permit Office works throughout the year to regulate event safety in our city, coordinating with sister departments and external stakeholders to ensure that events take place in the most secure environment.

‘The Events Department as a whole works to facilitate, support and enable a diverse calendar of events that includes community festivals, nationally and internationally recognised sporting spectacles, and major entertainment events. These figures show that our investment in creating an enabling environment for events continues to deliver meaningful economic and social returns for Cape Town and its residents,’ said Mayoral Committee Member for Safety and Security, Alderman JP Smith.

The 2025/26 financial year featured several standouts across the sporting, entertainment and cultural sectors, including:

• The Sanlam Cape Town Marathon securing Abbott World Marathon Major status
• A capacity crowd for the Springboks versus Australia Test at DHL Stadium
• A sold-out International Friendly between Bafana Bafana and Panama
• The sold-out Betway SA20 Final at Newlands Cricket Ground
• Back-to-back HSBC SVNS Cape Town titles for the Blitzboks
• The return of Red Bull Flugtag to Cape Town
• DHL Stadium welcoming a combined 235 880 spectators for DHL Stormers home matches, recording the second-highest attendance in the Vodacom United Rugby Championship
• More than 100 000 people attending the City’s annual Festive Lights Switch-On
• International fixtures including the Proteas Women versus Ireland and Springbok Women versus Black Ferns XV
• The FIM World Supercross Championship season finale
• The inaugural Speed Classic Cape Town
• The Heineken F1 World Tour
• A sold-out Comic Con Cape Town
• The inaugural EFC’s Knox Legacy Series
• FIH Hockey Nations Cup at Hartleyvale Stadium

For more information on these and other events hosted in Cape Town, visit www.eventsincapetown.com

End

Published by:
City of Cape Town, Media Office