Tokyo Basho Tickets Selling Poorly

[Mulboyne]

Advance sales for the first day of the Autumn basho in Tokyo have been sluggish. Over 4,200 tickets remain unsold and will now be offered as same-day sales. That's one of the worst levels of demand in the capital on record. Ryogoku has a capacity of around 11,000. Interestingly, the Sumo Association attributes the slow demand to the absence of tourists, saying that foreign groups sometimes take up to 40% of seats. That sounds to me like an inflated estimate of foreign demand and more like an attempt to downplay the impact of recent scandals and the earthquake on domestic demand.
Source (Japanese)

[MrUltimateGaijin]

because there are almost no fans under fifty and they dont really have any way to grow the fan base.

[Yokohammer]

... That sounds to me like an inflated estimate of foreign demand and more like an attempt to downplay the impact of recent scandals and the earthquake on domestic demand.

I'd have to agree with this.

There are always a few foreigners present but nowhere near 40% ... unless they're counting the zainichi Korean and Chinese crowd as "foreign tourists". Even then I doubt it's anywhere near 40%.

I will be keeping an eye on today's bouts via the tube.

[LTLurker]

I was there from 3 to 6 PM today in a box, along with one local friend and three tourists (who had never been to Japan before). There were lots of empty boxes and -- if I had to guess -- the upper levels were about half full.

[IparryU]

That sounds to me like an inflated estimate of foreign demand and more like an attempt to downplay the impact of recent scandals and the earthquake on domestic demand.

i would guess that this is the reason for shitty sales...

[Mike Oxlong]

Read somewhere late last night that about 3700 remained unsold by day's end.

[IparryU]

Read somewhere late last night that about 3700 remained unsold by day's end.

ouch.... i wonder how many sponsors still remain? that is where the sumo gets his bucks from right? aint it like their fight purse?

[Mike Oxlong]

Advance sales for the first day of the Autumn basho in Tokyo have been sluggish. Over 4,200 tickets remain unsold and will now be offered as same-day sales. That's one of the worst levels of demand in the capital on record. Ryogoku has a capacity of around 11,000. Interestingly, the Sumo Association attributes the slow demand to the absence of tourists, saying that foreign groups sometimes take up to 40% of seats. That sounds to me like an inflated estimate of foreign demand and more like an attempt to downplay the impact of recent scandals and the earthquake on domestic demand.
Source (Japanese)

This version claims that foreigners purchase around 40% of the day tickets, as opposed to 40% of total seats.
http://search.japantimes.co.jp/cgi-bin/ss20110917a1.html

[Mulboyne]

This version claims that foreigners purchase around 40% of the day tickets, as opposed to 40% of total seats.

That's far more likely. The Association only guarantees around 350 day tickets beforehand, adding to that number with any unsold seats. In days gone by, there were usually not many more than that in Tokyo, so it's easy to see how foreign demand could be as much as 40%. Tour guides used to recommend that tourists buy the unreserved seats, because it was easier than the convoluted system in pre-internet days. With higher numbers now available, certainly in the thousands, even a healthy number of tourists wouldn't get near to taking up the slack.

This article mentioned the association's 40% number but failed to put it in the context of day ticket demand.