Victoria’s visitor economy is at a record high, backed by the Carroll Labor Government’s blockbuster major events calendar.

Visitor spending increased by 6.6 per cent in the 12 months since June, climbing to $49.5 billion.

China made the largest contribution to the growth, contributing $3.6 billion in visitor expenditure.

That’s a 20 per cent year-on-year increase thanks to an 11.4 per cent rise in visitation.

Visitors from the United Kingdom also increased by 21.4 per cent, with spending increasing by 42.6 per cent.

Major draw-card events like the British & Irish Lions Tour and the Boxing Day Ashes Test helped fuel the growth.

Victorians spent $9 billion on trips in our regions, and Melbourne is topping Australia as a destination for interstate tourists with over 3.5 million trips and $4.5 billion in spending.

Just last week Melbourne Airport welcomed 243,000 passengers in two days, with 52 additional return flights from Perth compared to the same week last year as fans flocked to Victoria for the AFL Grand Final.

These results are from Tourism Research Australia’s Domestic Tourism Statistics and International Visitor Survey.

They follow the success of the MCG clash between the Los Angeles Rams and San Francisco 49ers this month.

The game averaged 21.7 million viewers on Netflix globally, ranking among the top three most-streamed Thursday prime-time NFL games.

Melbourne is now the first city in the world to host an NFL regular-season game, a Formula One Grand Prix and a tennis Grand Slam – another global first for Australia’s sporting capital.

Victoria’s major events calendar generated $3.64 billion in economic impact in 2025 and attracted close to 8 million attendances, supporting almost 17,000 jobs across the sector and broader visitor economy.

The Carroll Labor Government is delivering a packed major events calendar that brings huge benefits to our economy.