Texas vs Clemson game will bring significant economic boost to Austin

AUSTIN, Texas - The Texas Longhorns are hosting the Clemson Tigers in the first-ever College Football Playoff game at DKR on Saturday. As a result, Austin is seeing a significant economic boost.

A big weekend on the field ahead for the Longhorns also makes for a big weekend for the Austin economy.

The city of Austin is preparing for an increase in visitors for the first-round College Football Playoff matchup against the Clemson Tigers on Saturday.

"Any opportunity to welcome a large group of folks into town, certainly fans of UT, fans of the visiting team is a great opportunity for us," said Wesley Lucas with Visit Austin.

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Visit Austin says hotel occupancy in Austin for this weekend is projected to be 77% higher compared to last year’s 30%. 

"I heard some hotel saying that as soon as the game was announced that it was going to be here in Austin, they saw about a 20% bump in occupancy within 24 to 48 hours of that game being announced," said Lucas.

Austin’s W Hotel says its seeing a significant bump in guests this weekend. General manager Joanna McCreary says generally at this time it would typically have been at 30% occupancy, but it will likely end up around 75% this weekend.

"I know restaurants are staffing up. I know hotels are staffing up. You know, our employees get to get a little extra cash in their pockets before the holidays too, which is another nice thing. And I know all the UT fans are super excited about being part of the SEC and getting this one last game in before the year ends," said McCreary.

This is the first year with the new 12 team format compared to last year’s four-team playoff, meaning more teams have opportunities for home games. And it comes at a good time. December is historically a slow month for Austin tourism.

"The fact that we're going to be having a game in a typically slower time is going to be really great for our hotels, for our local businesses or retailers, our nightlife, our live music venues," said Lucas.

Kickoff is at 3 p.m. on Saturday, Dec. 21, at DKR.