adminBongani Ndlovu Showbiz Correspondent
NIGHTSPOTS in and around Bulawayo on Sunday night recorded brisk business during the live screening of the World Cup final in Brazil pitting eventual winners Germany and Argentina.A snap survey by Chronicle Showbiz in and around the city revealed that most bars benefitted from beer sales and entrance fees.
Patrons had to pay to watch the final with the entrance fee charged getting them a beer or two inside the venue.
The average price to enter bars and clubs was $3 with the move being a win win situation for both the nightspot owners and the patrons, judging by the number of people who went out to watch the football match that started at 9PM and ended at around 11PM.
The Fazak fan park that was set up in Woodlands had a lot of football supporters watching the game.
City nightspots such as Pub Lagondola, The Lounge, Horizon Pub & Grill and Cape to Cairo attracted a lot of football fans with most of them rooting for Argentina.
In high density suburbs, sports bars were the main beneficiaries of the World Cup with the help of Zesa due to power cuts there.
Most households had to contend with watching the match at sports bars due to power cuts in their neighbourhoods. The bars were packed with some patrons having to watch the match standing as chairs had run out.
Various nightspot entertainment managers said they recorded brisk business and were happy with the attendance of patrons.
Cape to Cairo manager Bheki Ndebele said they had to start their Sunday Ladies Night after the game as the women said they wanted to watch the game.
Ndebele said they had planned ahead for the World Cup final as they had fully stocked a variety of drinks.
“We ended making people pay when the match had started. We closed at around 5AM because most patrons did not want to leave the joint as most were drowning their sorrows and some were celebrating,” he said.
The usual “Sunday Old School Nights” at Metropolis bar had to be shelved for the duration of the game as patrons had communicated that they were only interested in watching the football match.
Metropolis entertainment manager, DJ Sweeto, said there was a significant difference in attendance as they had an increase of about 50 patrons.
“On any given Sunday we have a patronage of about 80 people. This week we had 130 and that’s good as the bar has a carrying capacity of 150 people. The World Cup final really helped us in terms of beer sales,” he said.
Online Reporter