Rally would net tourism €29m

BRINGING a round of the World Rally Championship to Ireland could boost tourism revenues by €29m.

Sean O’Connor of Rally Ireland, which is attempting to bring a stage of the championship to the country, said: “When we consider that a round of WRC series will attract 100,000 live spectators and a minimum of 20,000 bed nights, this would translate into direct expenditure by visitors in the region of €12m.

In addition, because WRC is an annual series, this income is guaranteed year on year.

“We can also add to that the indirect benefits of global exposure to an audience of over 770 million and growing and the true economic benefit is likely to be closer to the figure of €29m per year.”