Super Bowl XLIX in Glendale, Arizona, resulted in no significant consumer spending growth to the greater Phoenix area, according to an analysis of consumer spending patterns from payments technology company First Data, which says it annually handles 60 billion credit and debit card transactions.
The company's data shows spending growth from the two weeks surrounding last Sunday's game was only 3.1 percent better than average compared to the same time period a year before when the spending in the area grew 6.4 percent.
That's surprising given that not only did the area host the Super Bowl, but also the Pro Bowl the week before and the Phoenix Open -- the most highly attended event on the PGA Tour -- during the same week.
First Data numbers from the previous two Super Bowls in the New York/New Jersey area and in New Orleans reflected that the Super Bowl did contribute more to consumer spending than in Phoenix.
Consumer spending growth in the two weeks surrounding the Super Bowl were up 6.7 percent last year in the New York Metropolitan area compared to just 2.6 percent the year before. In 2012, New Orleans had negative-3.8 percent growth in the last few weeks of January, but the Super Bowl in 2013 pushed those numbers to the positive side (0.3 percent)
In the Phoenix area, bar revenue was up nearly 16 percent and hotel revenue up 12.9 percent over the two-week time period, but the positive growth in those categories were weighed down by declines in spending by the locals at grocery stores, at gas stations and at retail stores, said Krish Mantripragada, senior vice president of information and analytics at First Data.
The Arizona Super Bowl XLIX Host Committee said the game would bring an estimated $500 million to the state, thanks to 100,000 people that would come in from out of town. The committee raised $30 million to be able to pay for the costs associated with hosting the game.
David Rousseau, chair of the board of directors of the committee, said the group is gathering its own data to release an economic impact report, but that anecdotally there was no sense of disappointment.
"We had huge crowds everywhere," Rousseau said.
Metro light rail ridership Saturday was 126,000, which was double its previous record. The Phoenix Sky Harbor International Airport also handled a record amount of passengers on the Monday after the game.
The pool and bar at the W Scottsdale hotel -- which hosted parties thrown by Jamie Foxx and Playboy and concerts from Macklemore and Drake -- grossed 10 times more in sales in the five days leading up the game than it had for all of January 2014, said the hotel's director of bar operations, Joe Diggs.
"We brought in about a third of what we normally make in a year in less than a week," Diggs said.
First Data's numbers only seek to capture consumer spending and do not include spending by businesses.