GOOD FOR AUCKLAND?

Having the VOR boats in Auckland before their tumultuous dive into the Southern Ocean was a pretty big deal for the city. What sort of economic impact did it have?

We won’t know the answer until the numbers have been crunched – but everything points to the event being a great success – with even the weather playing ball. Officials estimate the twoweek stop-over drew more than 500,000 visitors to Westhaven’s Race Village. And as anyone who visited will attest, the range of activities and interactive displays translated into a great vibe.

A comparison with Alicante, in Spain, where the race started in October last year, provides an inkling. A recent study by Pricewaterhousecoopers (PWC) shows that the VOR generated nearly €100 million to the Spanish GDP and generated 1,700 jobs in the country. It also had a significant effect on national tax revenue, adding more than €41 million.

Hotels, restaurants and local business were the sectors to benefit the most. Alicante received 345,602 visitors from October 11 – 22, 2017, (10.3 percent more than in the 2014-15 edition of the race, and 17.6 percent more than in 2011-12).

PWC’S Jordi Esteve put the results in context: “It shows the great economic benefits the Volvo Ocean Race can bring to a city, a region and a country. The impact of the Race compared to other major events, whether sporting or otherwise, is a good measure of its value and importance.”

Interestingly, the PWC report concludes that the start of the Race in Alicante attracted more visitors to the Region of Valencia than all the major music festivals or any other major sporting event such as the Valencia Moto GP or the Valencia Marathon.

Alicante has also benefitted greatly by the international exposure it received via global media coverage of the race, particularly in its role as the start port – more than 10,000 news articles (print and online press) with almost 500 million impressions worldwide.

Over 750 news and television programmes covered the start, giving a cumulative audience of more than 200 million viewers, according to data provided by SMG Insight, the sports marketing analysis specialists.

After playing host to the start of the last four editions of the VOR, Alicante has agreed to extend its relationship with the race for at least two more cycles.