IT MAY be the day after the night before – but already businesses in Ipswich are starting to count the benefits of the England match on the local economy.

IT MAY be the day after the night before – but already businesses in Ipswich are starting to count the benefits of the England match on the local economy.

Every hotel, guest house, and bed-and-breakfast room in the Ipswich area was occupied last night.

That was believed to be an instant hit of more than £1,000,000 for the local economy – but once everything has been taken into account the figure is expected to be much higher.

Some experts believe the overall boost to the local economy could be as high as £30 million – but it will take some time for the full impact to be realised.

What has encouraged many tourism chiefs is that many people who came to town for the matched booked in to local hotels for several days – making a real short break surrounding the match.

And the entertainment laid on around the town during the day helped build a real carnival atmosphere enjoyed by those who went to the match as well as those who watched it at home or in the pub.

Ipswich is the smallest town to have staged a home international since Wembley closed in 2000, but regular England watchers felt it was more of an occasion than in other places.

Sky Sports' Chris Skudder visited the Star offices during the build-up to the game and said he had really been struck by the involvement of all sections of the community.

"Other towns and cities have been bigger – but I've never come across anywhere with as much enthusiasm as in Ipswich."

Within the ground there were estimates that £100,000 had been spent on food and drink – money which went straight to the FA with the club getting a proportion of the profits – but final figures have not yet been calculated.