British America’s Cup team makes significant economic impact + Video

by Land Rover BAR on 10 Nov 2015 The economic impact of Land Rover BAR – the British America's Cup team – on the UK has been valued in the sports team's first year of operation.

Ben Ainslie's decision to base the team in the UK, supported by the first round of the 2015 Louis Vuitton America's Cup World Series (ACWS) hosted in Portsmouth, has resulted in:

£47m economic impact (in Gross Value Added (GVA) terms) to the UK;
£59m media value (in advertising value equivalency (AVE) terms); and
730 full-time equivalent (FTE) jobs created across Great Britain.

Ben Ainslie, Team Principal and Skipper, Martin Whitmarsh, CEO and Sir Keith Mills, Director of Land Rover BAR and Chairman of the Louis Vuitton America's Cup World Series, Portsmouth presented the detailed figures.

The economic impact report by KPMG, released today, included:

The team and event combined generated £47m of UK economic impact (Team: £38m; Event: £9m) and £59m of media value (Team: £43m; Event: £22m, less £6m crossover).

Of the £38m of economic impact generated in the UK by the team, £19.2m is associated with operations and supply chain spend, and the development of the team HQ added another £18.5m.

The total of 730 FTE jobs supported by the team and event are the result of:

- 555 FTE jobs created via the team's activities, made up of 87 direct jobs with the team, 320 jobs in the supply chain supported by the team's expenditure, and another 148 induced jobs, resulting from employees spending a proportion of their additional income in the UK economy.

- 175 FTE jobs created as a result of the ACWS Portsmouth event, due to increased economic activity in its supply chain, and due to induced spending in the wider economy.

Economic impact from the team's first America's Cup campaign projected to be £96 million.

The team contributed to the development of skills in the marine sector through initiatives including working with 70 apprentices from Southampton City College in the building of the team's two Docking RIBs, and providing seven apprenticeships, two internships and nine work placements in all areas of the team: Boatbuilding, Design, Sustainability, IT, Finance and Marketing.

Case studies demonstrated how the team are encouraging their sustainability objectives to be adopted in their supply chain; as of July 2015, 0% of Green Marine's waste has gone to landfill.

Ben Ainslie commented: 'Land Rover BAR's primary goal has always been to bring the Cup home to Britain. At the same time, we set ourselves the goal of building a long-term sustainable, diversified business, creating a Motorsport Valley effect to bring technology, innovation and high quality jobs to the UK. It's great to see from the KPMG report that we are really starting to have a positive economic impact within the UK.'

Sir Keith Mills announced details of the Louis Vuitton America's Cup World Series event for 21-24 July, 2016.

He shared his objectives for future progress: 'The 2015 event was a launch-pad for us, our objective was to engage and excite a large audience through a fantastic sporting and entertainment festival and in doing so create real economic value and media profile for the UK and Portsmouth. Now it's time to move forward to our second event building on the learnings we have made, and we know we can deliver even more impact for all involved.'

Cllr Donna Jones, Leader of Portsmouth City Council said: 'This year Portsmouth has been given international exposure after welcoming Land Rover BAR to the city and as UK host for the summer's Louis Vuitton America's Cup World Series. We are now capitalising on the world-class maritime and marine expertise in the city and wider area, and anticipate further industries choosing to locate in Portsmouth.'

Come and support the team as they race for the final time on British waters ahead of the 35th America's Cup in Bermuda 2017. Early bird tickets are available for the Louis Vuitton America's Cup World Series event in Portsmouth from July 21-24, 2016 until the 6 December.