Impact of America’s Cup to be tallied

by Jonathan Bell on 3 Jul 2017 With the conclusion of the 35th America’s Cup, an independent assessment has been commissioned to determine its economic impact on Bermuda. PricewaterhouseCoopers has been hired by the ACBDA to conduct an independent study for completion by October, according to Grant Gibbons, the Minister of Economic Development.

Giving his congratulations to victors Emirates Team New Zealand, along with all the teams that took part, Dr Gibbons added: “Without a doubt, Bermuda has never hosted an event of this magnitude, and our success has already put us in an excellent position to host future international sporting and leisure events of similar scale.

“Although it is understood that AC36 will be held in New Zealand, decisions by teams, including the location of their bases, will be influenced by the timing of AC36, the style of boat and other race protocols for potential World Series events and races leading up to the finals. It is anticipated that announcements regarding AC36 will be made by the new Cup holder over the next weeks and months.”

In the meantime, Emirates Team New Zealand, Team France and Land Rover BAR will depart Bermuda by the end of July. The minister continued: “We would like to give Oracle Team USA, Artemis and Softbank Team Japan the ability to maintain some presence in Bermuda even if it is substantially scaled down.

“The new infrastructure underneath Cross Island is permanent, flexible and available for future use. This includes IT, water, drainage, electricity and sewage.” Meanwhile, the economic assessment of the event will also cover its social and environmental impact, which Dr Gibbons said was comparable to the studies completed by previous America’s Cup host venues, such as San Francisco and New Zealand.

“Some information about AC35 is already available. I am pleased to note that through this prestigious sailing event, Bermuda received extraordinary visibility on the world stage as the Cup was broadcast to 162 countries with millions of people watching. This is only a snapshot. More details about Bermuda’s media exposure will be released as part of the final assessment report. Over 100,000 people visited the Village over 22 days, there were 62,315 booked tickets on the special AC ferries alone, and some 2,000 boats registered as spectators of the event.

“Bermuda hosted over 460 visiting boats, with over 80 of them being superyachts. We received extremely positive feedback from the owners and captains of these boats, some who had never been to Bermuda before. As a result of this success, we have been developing a long-term superyacht policy and legislative framework. Another positive feature of AC35 has been the development of new marinas and marine services at the Hamilton waterfront, Hamilton Princess, Caroline Bay and the facilities at South Basin in Dockyard.

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