The NZI Sevens is officially the New Zealand capital's most successful money-making weekend.

An economic impact report into the 2008 tournament found that the giant two-day party generated NZ$15.6 million in extra spending and drew 45,000 visitors to Wellington.

"The impact of this event on Wellington is enormous. This is probably New Zealand's biggest single event, not just because of the event but because it wraps the city up," said David Perks, Chief Executive of Positively Wellington Tourism.

"We have as many people coming to town to watch it on a big screen as come to the actual stadium, so the economic impact on the city is, we reckon, close to 16 million (New Zealand) dollars.

"For a city that's a capital city that used to be seen as a centre of bureaucracy, now these Wellington Sevens have made the city an events capital and the NZI Sevens is a major part of that.

"Wellington can provide a party destination for the fans and a great stadium but also the fact that those things are tied together very closely and people don't get lost in a big city, or in hotels spread out over a large area.

"Wellington's small, it's compact, everyone can stay together and everyone's part of the game."

$45,000 dollars of meat pies in two days

To celebrate the event's 10 year anniversary, a four-day carnival has been planned to coincide with the Waitangi Day national holiday this year, and in the future it is hoped that the Sevens weekend will be extended to a week-long carnival.

"The bigger the festival, the better it is for Wellington and we know that people want to be involved with this as much as possible," Perks added.

"We know that there are 70,000 people who try but don't get tickets, we know there are people who can't do the whole thing, so the more we can pick up on the potential, the better."

The benefits to the city are also reaped on many levels, stretching far beyond the traditional bars, restaurants and cafes.

"Tourism has become a huge part of our economy. I was talking to a petrol station owner yesterday and he told me that he had sold $45,000 dollars worth of meat pies during the Sevens last year. He normally sells about $50 dollars of pies over the same two-day period, it's incredible for the economy of the city and also makes it a fantastic place to live."

The NZI Sevens by numbers

5 - There have been five different winners of the Wellington tournament:
2000 - Fiji
2001 - Australia
2002 - South Africa
2003 - New Zealand
2004 - New Zealand
2005 - New Zealand
2006 - Fiji
2007 - Samoa
2008 - New Zealand

8 - The number of events that comprise the 2008/09 IRB Sevens World Series. Dubai and George, South Africa were played in 2008 and after the NZI Sevens are San Diego on 14-15 February, Hong Kong on 27-29 March, Adelaide on 3-5 April, London on 23-24 May and Edinburgh on 30-31 May.

10 - The Wellington tournament celebrates its 10th anniversary this year along with the IRB Sevens World Series and three of the other events in South Africa, Hong Kong and London.

16 - Sixteen teams are competing in Wellington: Argentina, Australia, Canada, Cook Islands, England, Fiji, France, Kenya, New Zealand, Niue, Samoa, Scotland, South Africa, Tonga, USA and Wales.

40 - South Africa currently lie top of the World Series standings with a perfect 40 points, ahead of: New Zealand 28; England 24; Fiji 24; Argentina 16; Samoa 12; Portugal 8; Kenya 6; Australia 4; USA 4.
 
230 - More than 230 volunteers will help make the 2009 NZI Sevens a success. Many of the volunteers are repeat helpers and for some it will be their 10th year supporting the tournament.

1,300 - There are 1,300 guests each day in 65 corporate boxes and nine corporate lounges serve 6,000 meals over the two days - including 700kg of ham, 850kg of beef, 420kg of salmon, 390kg of chicken.

12,000 - Spectators sustain themselves with 12,000 burgers, 20,000 hot dogs and 15,000 pies at the NZI Sevens.
 
35,000 - the capacity for the NZI Sevens at the Westpac Stadium is 35,000 people.

45,000 - In 2008 the NZI Sevens attracted over 45,000 people to the city and demand for NZI Sevens tickets was in excess of 70,000.

15.6 million - The 2008 NZI Sevens tournament generated NZ$15.6 million from the two-day event for the Wellington city economy.