'Festival state' of South Australia trains sights on business events. Photo Credit: iStock/BenGoode
While Australia’s years-long campaign for COP31 did not pan out the way South Australia (SA) had hoped for, the campaign is “generating major economic momentum, helping drive a record pipeline of business events and global interest in South Australia”.
Announcing a AU$10 million (US$6.6 million) investment into Adelaide, South Australia (SA) premier Peter Malinauskas said: “Business events deliver incredible value to our tourism and hospitality sector and Adelaide is now well and truly on the national and international stage to host these events. As a government, we are determined to harness this momentum and translate it into even more events for our state.”
The funding is in addition to the AU$10 million already provided in the 2025–26 State Budget, taking the total value of the SA Business Events Bid Fund to A$38 million.
A compelling case for Adelaide
Following the announcement, Business Events Adelaide rolled out a rapid-response campaign aimed at securing new business events in 2026.
This targets national associations, corporate groups and business event organisers, aiming to attract short-lead bookings specifically for the July–December 2026 period.
The SA government has also agreed to temporarily relax bid funding criteria for events held within the target period.
Business Events Adelaide CEO Damien Kitto said: “This investment allows us to move quickly to fill a key booking window in 2026… Adelaide is already Australia’s most affordable business event destination, but these offers – available during one of our peak periods – make an even more compelling case for choosing South Australia.”
To support the campaign, Business Events Adelaide members have developed value-added offers for business events held during winter and spring 2026 – an ideal time of year in the festival state.
The 2026 initiative launches today (9 December 2025) and will remain active until February 2026.
Boom times
South Australia’s pipeline of prospective business events has more than doubled compared with this time last year, valued at an estimated AU$3.1 billion over the next five years.
Business events deliver a strong and immediate return to the state’s economy, with interstate and overseas delegates spending an average of AU$1,165 per day while in Adelaide, according to the University of Adelaide’s South Australian Centre for Economic Studies.
Besides Adelaide’s COP31 candidacy, the city has already secured more than 10 business events for the August–December period next year, valued at AU$25 million. These events are expected to attract around 5,000 delegates and generate 16,000 bed nights for Adelaide hotels.
In addition, more than 20 further business events are currently being aggressively pursued now that the COP decision is known, representing significant additional opportunities for the state.