Cork still in with chance to host America's Cup as bid progresses

Members of Emirates Team New Zealand lift the America's Cup trophy in celebration during the welcome home parade in 2017 in Auckland, New Zealand. Picture: Anthony Au-Yeung/Getty Images

Cork remains firmly in contention to host one of the largest sporting events in the world, the America’s Cup, in 2024, despite questions about funding a competition of such size and scale.

Team New Zealand wants to announce the venue for the next America’s Cup by September 17, said Foreign Affairs Minister Simon Coveney.

Mr Coveney has involved the Cabinet in Ireland’s bid to host the 37th America’s Cup in 2024, working closely with the Taoiseach and Sports Minister Catherine Martin over the last few months to bring the international sporting event to Irish shores.

New Zealand is the current holder of the competition, which predates the modern Olympics by 45 years, but is unlikely to agree terms to host again in three years' time, and so has been gauging bids from other countries.

Hosting such an event is costly, an economic report found.

The 36th America’s Cup Impact Evaluation Final Report said: “The cost-benefit analysis for Auckland has identified overall costs of $629.4m (€369.84) against benefits of $537.8m (€316m). This is a net cost of $91.6m (€53.8m) and a benefit-cost ratio of $0.85 (€0.49c).

“In other words, for every dollar put in Auckland got 85 cents back. When considering financial returns only, Auckland got 72 cents back for every dollar put in.” 

However, Mr Coveney insisted such a project would be a boon to Cork’s economy.

“The last time the America’s Cup was held in a European venue, 2.5m spectators came to see it, and it was worth over €2bn to the Spanish economy," he said. 

This is sport on a very big scale, and we happen to have one of the most impressive natural harbours in the world, which has given us a natural resource to credibly bid for an event of this scale.

“It’s very exciting and this is something that is less about the sport itself, and more about the event and the investment and the momentum that can be built around Cork and Munster economies around something of this magnitude coming here. We are in a good place, but it is far from concluded,” he said.

Any proposals brought to the Government for a decision will be consistent with spending codes and will be fully thought through on the back of a cost-benefit analysis, he said.

“We have a very good team, EY is in the middle of finalising a cost-benefit analysis at the moment in terms of financial value to the country of a global sporting event of this scale, which many would say is third only to the Olympics and the Football World Cup in hosting a global sporting event. 

"The America’s Cup goes on for nearly three years in terms of build-up events and team presence and so on, it’s a bit like Formula 1.

“I don’t want to set out exact timelines because that has to be agreed with Government, but this is moving forward, and Team New Zealand has said it wants to announce the venue for the next America’s Cup by September 17 and so that is the timeline we are working to as well.”