Media release
17 February 2016

Auckland shortlisted in top 10 for Ultimate Sports City Award

Auckland has been shortlisted in the top 10 SportBusiness Ultimate Sports Cities Awards, reinforcing its global reputation for hosting international sporting events.

In an announcement made this week in Paris, Auckland was listed alongside other great international sporting cities including Calgary, Copenhagen, Glasgow, London, Los Angeles, Manchester, Melbourne, New York and Tokyo.

The short list for the biennial awards is selected from a long list of 30 and an initial selection of 150 cities.

Mayor Len Brown says it is great to see Auckland again recognised on the global stage, holding its own amongst the world’s best.

“Auckland has seen first-hand how events can transform a city. We adopted Auckland’s Major Events Strategy five years ago with a clear vision to build Auckland into a great major events destination, and this recognition supports the strategy and the results it is achieving for Auckland,” he says.

“It’s no coincidence that the shortlisted cities are not only known for staging great events, but also for their quality of life, transport and infrastructure – they are known internationally for being great places to live, work and visit.

“Our events, from things like last year’s ICC Cricket World Cup and FIFA U-20 World Cup, to the inaugural Tāmaki Herenga Waka Festival and Pop-up Globe this year, and the World Masters Games coming up next year, are truly showcasing Auckland as one of the world’s most liveable cities.”

Auckland Tourism, Events and Economic Development (ATEED) Chief Executive Brett O’Riley says: “Acknowledgements like this, and being recognised amongst cities of this calibre, show that Auckland’s Major Events Strategy is returning great results for Auckland.

“Since it was implemented, Auckland has gained a reputation as a world-class events city, capability in the local events industry has grown considerably, and ATEED-sponsored major events have exceeded their targets, contributing $204 million to the regional economy and generating 1,265,000 visitor nights for the city.

“Major events are a key driver of our visitor economy, and of the economic, social and cultural development of our region.”

ATEED’s 2015/16 major events portfolio includes 34 events, ranging from the Downer NRL Auckland Nines and ITM 500 Auckland V8 Supercars to Pasifika, the Auckland Writers Festival and the inaugural Auckland City Limits, happening this weekend at Western Springs.

The highly successful 2014/15 major events season, which included the ICC Cricket World Cup, FIFA U-20 World Cup and the Volvo Ocean Race Auckland Stopover returned $85 million to the regional economy and generated 426,500 visitor nights.

Ends

Notes for editors:

· The top 10 cities were named at the international City Events forum held in Paris this week.

· The final SportBusiness Ultimate Sports Cities Awards results will be announced at SportAccord Convention in Lausanne, Switzerland in April 2016, where the prize of Ultimate Sports City 2016 will be presented to the winning city alongside awards for individual winners across the scoring categories as well as by size of city.

· In addition to the top 10 shortlist for the main award, Auckland has been shortlisted in the top five in the following categories:

o Best Hosting

o Best Event Strategy

o Best Security

o Best Home-Grown Event

· In 2014, the last time these biennial awards were made, Auckland was named the third best sporting city in the world, ranking after London and Melbourne. In 2014, Copenhagen and Calgary made up the rest of the top 5.

· Also in 2014, Auckland was named top medium-sized sporting city in the world, beating Paris, Kuala Lumpur, Dubai and Copenhagen. It won the categories for best event legacy, security and homegrown event for the Dick Smith NRL Auckland Nines.

ends

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