Photo: Xinhua

Sports-related tourism is flourishing in China as the UEFA European Football Championship kicks off, marked by a surge in soccer-related activities and spending. 

There's been notable uptick in travel bookings for Germany lately. According to online retail platform Meituan.com, during the past week, bookings for group tours to Germany went up 347 percent year-on-year.

And, data from ticketing platform Tongcheng.com showed that, as of June 13, the UEFA European Football Championship (Euro 2024), hosted in10 cities scattered in Germany, led to a jump of 140 percent year-on-year in hotel bookings for June 16-30.

The enthusiasm of China's sport tourists is providing a lift for German and European tourism market, as the travelers flock to experience Europe's rich football culture, analysts said. 

Euro 2024 officially kicked off in Germany on Friday, and flight and hotel bookings surged in the 10 host cities -- Berlin, Cologne, Dortmund, Dusseldorf, Frankfurt, Gelsenkirchen, Hamburg, Leipzig, Munich and Stuttgart.

Berlin's hotel bookings more than doubled, while bookings in Hamburg nearly quadrupled.

On travel platform Trip.com, hotel room bookings in Germany were up 142 percent from June 14 to July 14 when the football matches will be held.

The influx of visitors to Europe is expected to inject significant revenues into the local economy, benefiting the local hospitality sector, Liu Dingding, a veteran industry observer, told the Global Times on Sunday. 

Euro 2024 is expected to drive the economy and tourism growth during the summer season, Liu noted.

Euro 2024 and the impending 2024 Summer Olympic Games in Paris will provide a significant boost to help Europe's tourism market revival. 

Group tour bookings to Germany during the European football championship saw a 347-percent rise year-on-year, while those to France during the upcoming Olympics are expected to rise by 225 percent year-on-year, according to Tongcheng.com.

The figures underscore the robust growth of sports-induced tourism. As Euro 2024 fever sweeps across China, with retail sales and bookings for e-sports hotels and pubs also surging. 

Tongcheng.com revealed a surge of 310 percent in bookings for e-sports hotels in China, starting two weeks before the official start of the event, especially in major cities such as Beijing, Shanghai, Nanjing, Hangzhou, Suzhou, Zhengzhou and Chengdu. Hotels are mounting large screens in public squares for public viewing.

Some fans are attending e-sports hotels to watch the matches. The energy in the air is contagious, as they unite to cheer on their beloved teams, and it is this feeling of engagement that adds to the excitement of the event, Liu said.

Cutting-edge technology and huge screens at e-sports hotels create an ideal setting for enjoying the games with friends.

Pubs across China also prepared for the arrival of Euro 2024 enthusiasts. One in Shanghai's Xuhui district invested in new equipment including two TV sets and a 100-inch projection machine and screen. The pub was fully booked for the opening matches, thepaper.cn reported.