The
Copa América de Vela
may return to Spanish waters in 2024, specifically, those of Valencia. The Government of
Pedro Sánchez
will have on the table the possibility that Spain will host the world's largest sailing competition for the third time. This is what the representative of
Team New Zealand
, current champion and organizer,
Grant Dalton
,
is going to offer him
, who could hold meetings in the coming days with representatives of the State Administration. The objective is to achieve an economic agreement that settles an 'auction' in which they take months and allows to announce on November 17 where the 37th edition of the competition will be held.
Historically, the Copa América was played in the waters of the yacht club that supports the winning team of the previous edition, the so-called
defender
, which is challenged by the rest of the unions. That order was altered in 2007 in Valencia. The winner, the Swiss
Alinghi
, had no sea and made a selection between cities that was especially beneficial and marked the future of the competition.
Team New Zealand is now immersed in that 'auction'. With the Auckland headquarters in the air, the home of the Royal New Zealand Yacht Squadron, due to the crisis generated by the Covid pandemic, which has reduced tourism in the southern hemisphere and complicates the investment of sponsors in the event. His ideal destination was Europe, with a greater commercial exploitation for the luxury client that accompanies this competition. Along the way you can also stay in
Jeddah
(Saudi Arabia) due to the restrictions that prevail in the country.
Cook
, in Ireland, was an option with weight, until his government broke up en bloc due to the investment necessary to create the infrastructure to support the event: 400 million euros. And in those Valencia has been resurrected.
The Real Club Náutico de Valencia put together a candidacy, but had to withdraw.
Niccolò Porzio di Camporotondo
(founder of H2O Riders Science & Management),
Alejandro Fliquete
and
Carlos de Beltrán
(president and manager of RCN Valencia respectively) and
Antonio Alquezar
(partner of Redstone Advisory Partners), did not find the necessary institutional support to consolidate their candidacy . They needed 30 million euros to pay the fee demanded by the New Zealanders and around 40 million more for the organization of the previous races over the next few years and the installation of
removable provisional bases
for the challenging teams, which they estimate could be around average. dozen.
The Valencia City Council closed the doors to them and in the Generalitat it was considered that the proposal did not have enough support.
However, those sensitivities have changed.
The reason is that the option of bringing the Copa América to Spain is still alive, but this time the door they are knocking on is Pedro Sánchez's.
Grant Dalton, CEO of the Team New Zealand union H.
HOOPER
Parallel to the candidacy of the Náutico de Valencia, there was another Spanish one headed by
Francesco de Leo
, former director of Telecom Italia, along with the businessmen,
Pablo Beltrán
and
Víctor Hugo Morán
, who had already advanced some contacts with different from the Government.
This group received a letter from Grant Dalton on September 14 entrusting them to negotiate with the authorities and advising them that he would come to Spain within 15 days to advance in this line.
Economic impact
The idea of this group was to take the competition to
Barcelona
, but the option of Valencia takes shape again, leaving Barcelona in a second step. The memory of the 2007 Cup is very pleasant and would increase the possibility of attracting participating and visiting teams. In addition, the infrastructure is ready,
La Marina de Valencia
, and with more brilliance.
With the involvement of the Government, the Generalitat and the City Council could reconsider collaborating in the competition. This is what the employers' associations and the
tourism sector
are asking for
, which needs a post-pandemic stimulus. In the coming weeks, meetings could take place on the basis of a more solid project and the argument of the data in hand. According to the Valencian Institute of Economic Research (IVIE), the 2007 edition had an economic impact of 2.67% on the GDP of the Valencian Community and generated 3.29% of employment. In direct spending it left 686 million euros, 56% in restaurant services, commerce and hotels. Almost 6 million tourists came to Valencia for sailing between 2004 and 2007.
The Copa América 2024 would be a plan to relaunch Valencian tourism. Not for nothing is it considered one of the three most important sporting events in the world after the World Cup and the Olympic Games. In the latest financial audit presented at the last edition of the America's Cup in Auckland, held in the middle of the Covid-19 pandemic, it stands out that it was the edition with the most
audience on TV with a total of 68 million people
.
For the initiative to prosper, the three administrations, state, regional and municipal, will have to shake off the memory that associates the great event with the years of splendor of the
popular
Rita Barberá
, as mayor, and
Francisco Camps
at the head of the Generalitat, who they monopolized it and it left a deep mark on the public coffers.
That 2007 edition had a cost of 450 million, 300 of which the Government of Spain has just assumed, canceling the debt.
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