In a world over-informed and with the ability to connect us to any point on the planet, being relevant is increasingly complicated. Be it a journalist, an athlete, a club or even a city. We cannot deny that Barcelona is still remembered by many for what the 1992 Games meant, since even the International Olympic Committee (IOC) continues to use them as an example of the legacy that a great sporting event should leave in the territory. Having said that, we can either live in the memory of the Montjuïc cauldron or define how the city can continue to rely on these events for its economic revitalization.
The international studies are revealing, and the Catalan capital continues to fall in the rankings. The city has gone from seventh to eighth in terms of sport, while Madrid has climbed one position and is now fifth, according to the Ranking of Sports Cities study by Burson Sport. And one of the key elements that marks ups and downs is the verbalisation of its ambitions regarding the attraction of events, according to the study, which is based on the opinion of international federations, executives and the media.
Here we must trust that the recent change of strategy promoted by the mayor Jaume Collboni bear fruit in the medium term. Copa América, La Vuelta, the efforts to maintain Formula 1… The city wants to be a protagonist again and this is good news, although a lot of education will have to be done at the citizen level to make people understand that this is no longer about who puts the most money on the table to attract major events.
Learning from failures
The sector has learned from its failures and is now looking for projects that provide certainty and where the investments that are proposed really mean improvements for the local sports network or are an accelerator of public works that were already contemplated. And that is where Barcelona must define a plan, in collaboration with the private sector: to see what needs to be modernised, what we lack and what complementarity of publics and de-seasonalising elements of tourism can have one or another tournament. A strategy with a long-term vision.
The city has tradition, facilities, important sporting properties and great appeal. There is a lack of internal conviction that the return is clear and benefits the whole of the citizenry, and that is what legacy plans are for, to remind us what was possible thanks to the arrival of that event. The competition is high, as are the examples of Miami or the dazzling rise of Madrid. And the international attention for which they compete is the same.
The rise of women’s soccer
Women’s soccer is constantly surpassing milestones, all aimed at placing the sport as one of the most dominant within the sport practiced by women. Invisible less than five years ago for the vast majority of the population, today its competitions are the ones that attract the most media attention. And also the ones that investors look at most closely, along with basketball. The prospects are high and where they put their money is a reflection of where their instinct for obtaining returns says the big brands will be. And the United States clearly has the advantage of being a historic place for women’s soccer, of having a large consumer market and of being home to some of the biggest fortunes. Three elements that help to understand why the CEO of Disney, Bob IgerAnd his wife, Willow Bayhave taken control of Angel City FC with a valuation of 250 million dollars. Not only that, but they will also invest another 50 million to support its growth. Figures that, in Europe, would be enough to finance a dynasty considering the budgets here. So the alternatives are two: let the US dominate this territory, or the great European powers step on the accelerator.
2024-07-19 09:33:52
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