MILAN, Feb 16 (Reuters) - Demand for Winter Olympics tickets has risen later than for other major sports events, with fans committing after the holiday season and continuing purchases into the Games' second week, On Location CEO Paul Caine said.
"With the Olympics, there's a varying degree of when the desire begins," Caine told Reuters on Saturday.
"In this particular Winter Games, it feels like the holidays came upon us and people started to decide they wanted to go after that.
"Even now, we're halfway through the Games and people are still buying and then getting on planes to come here. So it's interesting how the demand curve changes."
Fans packed the streets around the Arco della Pace, where one of two Olympic cauldrons dazzled tourists and locals over the weekend as enthusiasm for the Games appeared to be surging.
The Games in Italy have so far gone off largely without a hitch, with ticket sales currently at 85%, or 1.27 million sold as of Saturday.
REGIONAL BUYING HABITS
Caine said differences in the timing of ticket and hospitality purchases for major international sporting events often reflect regional buying habits.
Americans typically purchase earlier while European and some Asian customers tend to decide later, a pattern he said can complicate planning for global events.
Demand for this summer's FIFA World Cup has come early, driven by anticipation of the tournament's return to North America, he said.
Interest was strong even before the draw in December and accelerated further afterward.
Caine pointed to the Super Bowl as another event that draws early buyers, typically soon after packages go on sale in May or June, as fans lock in plans well ahead of the game.
For the Los Angeles Olympics in 2028, On Location is working to develop a variety of options at various price points.
"We're going to have hundreds of thousands of guests coming to LA who are going to want to do more than just have a ticket to go see the Olympics," he said.
"We will help them with all of the things they need, whether it's hotels, transportation, ticketing, experiences, excursions to have a bucket list, once-in-a-lifetime opportunity."
Sports tourism has emerged as a major economic driver, with spending in the sector reaching $600 billion annually and projected to surpass $1 trillion within a few years, Caine noted.
"The growth rate is extraordinary," he said.
(Reporting by Rory Carroll in Milan; Editing by Toby Davis)
