For Bars and Restaurants, One Last World Cup Celebration

Establishments that cater to World Cup fans have seen a surge of business over the past month. On the eve of the final between Spain and the Netherlands, business owners reflect on the soccer madness -- and look forward to one last party.

By Rachel Leven

Posted 7/ 10 10 at 12:00 PM | Business Trends, Money, Management, International Business, Food & Beverage, Retail

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Gooooooal! World Cup fans -- and bars and restaurants that cater to them -- are bracing for one last celebration.

Every four years, as the world goes soccer crazy, many bars and restaurants receive an influx of revenue from the World Cup. Despite a still-sluggish economy, for some establishments that cater to "football" fans here in the United States, business has never been better. And while Sunday's final match between Spain and the Netherlands will crown a new World Cup champion, bringing an end to the monthlong sporting celebration, owners say they are looking forward to one last party -- and one last surge of customers.

The World Cup has invigorated small establishments that normally have slow summer months. Many bars are reporting double or triple their average June and July revenue, attributing the success to the soccer tournament.

But the World Cup does more than bring new revenue for small businesses. The Netherlands, with it's 14-0-0 tournament record, could win its first World Cup trophy. This would mean vindication for the Dutch team, which has appeared in the final game twice, in 1974 and 1978, and lost both times.

Spain, however, has been a favorite from the beginning, with a strong team of players from both RC Madrid and FC Barcelona. If Spain wins, it will be one of few teams to win the entire tournament after losing its first match, and the team will have clinched its first ever World Cup title. Only three teams have ever made it to the round of 16 after losing their opening match.

While some customers choose to go to nationality-based establishments to watch the games, others prefer sports bars or their normal hangouts. With a global tournament, there is enough business for everyone, bar owners point out.

On the eve of the final, AOL Small Business spoke to a handful of businesses across the nation, to reflect on this year's World Cup -- and what they are expecting for the final.

"We've been in business for 20 years and this is our fifth World Cup. We've gotten more business since the World Cup's begun, especially because June and July are slow months either way. Business has been about the same [this World Cup compared to previous ones]. We're in a recession, so it's a little different and hard to compare. We're an Argentinean destination, so every four years, we are the place to come to see the game. Most of our customers are South American. We "normal staff" the event [and are expecting a full house].

"Twenty years of business is 20 years of business. Our first World Cup, we brought a television from home -- one of those old big-box televisions. We packed it in. And the more the years went by, now we have a five plasmas and surround sound and it's a little different, but it's the charm of remembering how it was. I have some of the same customers who come to see every World Cup. The feel of Novacento is kind of unique, so once you're in here, it kind of captures you. There's something very sexy about this place. So that, with the food and the vibe, is kind of what gets people back."

Vanessa Schilling

Co-partner

Novecento
New York

"It is a sports bar. We have probably 50-plus TVs [including] TVs in the restroom. And we are, I believe, the only place in San Diego with a 3-D TV. The 3-D glasses are first-come, first-serve here. I'd say the final four of this is equal to if not greater than March Madness basketball. On the weekend games, we have to stop letting people in because we hit capacity. June and July are our slowest months, so this has helped us tremendously. This June and July are up about 30 percent from last June and July, and we attribute that to the World Cup.

"This World Cup is bigger than the last one, with a higher sales number and bigger attendance. A lot of new people who have never been here before have come to the games. We don't really advertise. We open for games at 4:30 in the morning, even though we can't really serve, we don't make money at that time, but we open up for them anyways. We have a sign-up for e-mail, where you get a free pizza and both birthday and anniversary meals to encourage people to become repeat customers. We absolutely had to have more staff on call. The bottom line is for any of the big weekend games, we had to stop letting people in because we were at capacity. So we know what we're doing."

Michael Pasulka

Owner

Players Sports Bar

San Diego

"Business has double- and triple-folded since the World Cup started. We've had people come in as early as 6 to see the games. We've been full every single game. We don't even have to ask staff members if they want to do a double shift, because it's a great time to make money, and we've hired a few more [staff] and everybody is happy to work. Everyone's a little depressed that it's almost over.

"The most memorable moment for the World Cup at the bar was really when [U.S. forward Landon] Donovan scored that last goal. The whole place erupted. People were making out, they were celebrating and hugging everybody. It was absolute chaos, but in the best sense of it. More than half of our customers we've seen before. [At Sunday's game] we expect that it will be dominated by Spain and Netherlands fans. We're opening early for the final and telling customers to come hours early. Everybody's working. Every game has been full, people coming from Ghana, people from the Ivory Coast.... I didn't even know we had so many people from the Ivory Coast in this area! The World Cup is full of so many special moments because you get to spend it with so many special people."

Gavin Shawn Nazareth
Manager

Summers Restaurant
Arlington, Va.

Tags: Germany vs. Uruguay, South Africa, Spain vs. Netherlands, vuvuzela, World Cup, World Cup bars, World Cup final