By Zabada N. Abouelhana
On February 12, Super Bowl LVII was held in Glendale’s State Farm Stadium with nearly 68,000 spectators. Attendance levels were just below the average for the last eight Super Bowls (excluding the COVID-19-affected year of 2021) and below the 2015 game’s 70,288 attendees, also in Phoenix. However, this year’s event did not disappoint the hotel industry in Greater Phoenix.
Prior to the weekend, STR forecasted Phoenix’s Super Bowl weekend performance: 94% occupancy levels at $445 average rates, equating to $419 revenue per available room (RevPAR)—the second-highest levels for a Super Bowl weekend in history.
WE WON! We exceeded RevPAR expectations for the weekend, falling below forecasted occupancy levels but far surpassing ADR forecasts. In the chart below, you can see the nightly occupancy and rate levels for the Phoenix market compared to 2015 performance.
Source: STR
We note that supply in the Phoenix market has increased by 11.7% since 2015, which greatly affected occupancy levels during this weekend. Furthermore, many hoteliers noted that a number of large groups and corporations that had booked large room blocks for the weekend canceled at the last minute. While hotels still collect some revenue from these cancellations, the rooms are not reflected in the occupancy levels for the weekend.
That didn’t stop our hoteliers from driving rates up, especially with the Super Bowl event taking place on the same weekend as the Waste Management Phoenix Open. Phoenix’s Super Bowl weekend registered the second-highest ADR and RevPAR levels in Super Bowl history, with Miami in 2020 leading at $559 ADR and $519 RevPAR.
Additionally, hotels benefited from revenue beyond hotel room bookings, including banquets, increased food and beverage sales, and other ancillary revenue sources, such as spas and meeting room rentals.
The city is already looking forward to its next Super Bowl host experience!
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