THE SPORTS SECTOR IN BARCELONA AND CATALONIA BARCELONA, WORLD SPORTS CAPITAL [Front cover] View of Barcelona from the Picornell swimming pools. Property: Catalan Tourist Board Copyright: Lluís Carro THE SPORTS SECTOR IN BARCELONA AND CATALONIA BARCELONA, WORLD SPORTS CAPITAL 10 REASONS WHY CATALONIA IS SPORT 01 Sports power: major clubs and sports practitioners. 02 Organiser of top international sports events. 03 Top level sports facilities and infrastructure. 04 Land of sportsmen and women: talent, training and education. 05 Home of major companies and leading brands. 06 Headquarter of major foreign sport companies. 07 Sports tourism: a perfect location with perfect conditions. 08 Leader on ICT, Health, Design and R&D. 09 The Barcelona brand: much more than a city. 10 INDESCAT: the Catalan Sports Cluster. Image courtesy of the Barcelona brand campaign by the Barcelona City Council 2 THE SPORTS SECTOR IN BARCELONA AND CATALONIA BARCELONA, WORLD SPORTS CAPITAL 3 PRESENTATION Since the beginning of the 20th century Catalonia has been very actively in- is Futbol Club Barcelona. It plays a of the sports that have held some of This document describes all the assets volved in sports, ranging from football to motorsports, and the sports world, crucial role and has become the best their most prestigious international and potential of the sports sector in ranging from clubs and social participation to companies and entrepreneurship. ambassador of Catalonia and Barce- competitions in Barcelona and Cata- Catalonia and in Barcelona, giving 10 This dynamism culminated in the 1990s with the 1992 Olympic Games, but also lona around the world. Barça is one of lonia. At the same time, Catalonia is strategic reasons WHY CATALONIA with the internationalisation of Football Club Barcelona, the F1 Championship, the world’s best-known football clubs experiencing a massive growth in the IS SPORT. and the development of excellent infrastructures such as the High Performance and a regular participant in the UEFA practice of sport and fun runs, with Centre (CAR). With all these assets, entrepreneurs and sportspeople, a powerful Champions League. Barça players are a local and international participants and growing sports industry cluster has developed what is a pole of attraction good example on how Catalan sports- in races such as the Zurich Barcelona for companies and talent. men are among the best of the world, Marathon which has more than 18,000 but the club is also a good example runners, over 40% from outside Spain. The great importance that Catalan ranch, and the international media. on how foreign sportsmen are trained society attaches to sport has helped Today, Catalonia and Barcelona hold a here to succeed internationally. Kilian Last but not least, this constant Catalonia to become a world leader in leading position in sport, propped up Jornet (ski mountaineer and long-dis- spirit of improvement is also shared this field, making Barcelona the third by several pillars described below. But tance runner) or Pau Gasol (basketball) by the business sector, another most sport-oriented city worldwide. there is still much to improve and we As early as 1926, on his visit to Bar- are all working together to strengthen Catalonia is the territory with the greatest concentration of sports celona, the founder of the modern this leading position. businesses in Europe. It has more than 500 companies linked to sport, which Olympic Games Baron Pierre de Cou- bertin wrote: “Before my visit to Bar- One important pillar is the Sant Cugat represents more than 70% of Spanish production, with a turnover exceeding celona, I thought I knew what a sport CAR, a facility created for the Olympic 4 billion euros and more than 22,000 employees. This growing sector includes city was like”. Games. It is one of the most advanced elite sports centres in the world, a wide variety of industries and accounts for 2.1% of the Catalan GDP1. With a large capital, Barcelona, and receives top athletes and is in charge a strong personality, Catalonia has of training national sportsmen and are other examples of local talent, and key pillar. Local sports businesses always been defined as a sports coun- women. Another pillar and a crucial obvious pillars of the Catalan sports develop around the organisation of try. The 1992 Olympic Games marked sports facility is the Circuit de Barce- ecosystem. sports events, building and man- a turning point in the city’s transfor- lona-Catalunya. Located near Barce- aging sports facilities, or designing mation and had an impact on an inter- lona, it hosts prestigious motorsports In recent years Catalonia and Barce- and distributing sports goods. Local national level. Catalonia showed the competitions, such as Formula 1 and lona have showed the world a great entrepreneurs combine with the rest of the world it led the way in the Moto GP, which have an economic organisational capacity, hosting some local headquarters of international organisation of great sports events. impact worth more than 175 million of the most prestigious sports events. big brands. The competitiveness of In fact, the XXV Olympic Games were euros a year. Football, handball, snowboarding, this cluster comes from this capac- described as “the best of the modern extreme sports, basketball, horse rid- ity to combine sport and business, 1 El pes econòmic de l’esport a Catalunya. era” up to that point by the former With over 160,000 club members, ing, tennis, motorsports, swimming, to attract talent and the atmosphere Consell Català de l’Esport. IOC President, Juan Antonio Sama- another key pillar of Catalan sport sailing, athletics and cycling are some Barcelona inspires. Secretaria General de l’Esport. 4 THE SPORTS SECTOR IN BARCELONA AND CATALONIA BARCELONA, WORLD SPORTS CAPITAL 5 SPORTS POWER: MAJOR CLUBS AND SPORTS 01 PRACTITIONERS Barcelona is the third city in the world as regards club members. The practice of sport in Catalonia is Some of them are internationally rec- increasing. The number of people ognised because of their long tradition, who do sport rose to 50% in 2009, their large membership and their suc- up from 35% in 1990. In fact, a study cess in competitions. carried out in 2012 and coordinated by INDESCAT, the Catalan Sports Cluster, In Barcelona we find the oldest club put the number of sports practition- in Spain, the Círculo Ecuestre. Since ers in Catalonia to 63%. This study it was founded, many other clubs FIATC Joventut. pointed to a big growth have followed and today Palau d’Esports, Badalona. in “sports lovers”: people some have a history Property: Catalan Tourist Board who do sport more than stretching back around Copyright: Cablepress twice a week. They repre- 100 years. Futbol Club sent around 20% of the Barcelona is one of Catalan population and Barcelona’s best global have led a big growth in ambassadors, with over fun runs and the level of 160,000 members around participation. the world. And with the slo- Lionel Messi. gan “more than a club”, Barça has Property: Mundo Deportivo A clear example of the importance won top championships not only as a Copyright: Eduard Omedes that sport has in Catalan life is the football team but in other sports too, Spanish youth water polo number of sport facilities registered such as basketball, handball, futsal Swimming: Club Natació Sabadell, the 1992 Olympic Games equestrian championship. throughout the country: 35,424 sports and hockey. from which as many as eight athletes events; Real Club Náutico de Barce- Club Natació Sabadell. Property: UFEC: Catalan Sports facilities, 14,316 sports clubs, 21 took part in the 2012 London Olympic lona, a reference point in Mediter- Federations Union recognised national teams and There are other internation- Games, Club Natació Atlètic-Barce- ranean sailing; FIATC 72 sports federations, which ally renowned clubs as well loneta, with more than 11,000 mem- Joventut, the first are grouped together in the that are inherently linked to bers; and Club Natació Barcelona. Cata lan club to win the UFEC, the Catalan Sports Barcelona and Catalonia in Euroleague Basketball Federations Union. sports such as football, Tennis: Real Club de Tennis Barcelona, League; the RACC, a swimming and tennis. which organises the Barcelona Open landmark in the motor- Catalonia, and especially Banc Sabadell Trofeu Conde de Godó; ing sector; the Cen- Barcelona, has a large Football: Real Club Depor- and Club Tennis de La Salut. tre Excursionista de number of sports clubs that tivo Español, the second Catalalunya, the Grup promote the practice of sport, civic football club in Barcelona in terms Top clubs should be highlighted in Excursionista i Esportiu commitment, competition and the of membership, and Gimnàstic de other sports to, such as Real Club Gironí and the Sícoris international projection of the city. Tarragona. de Polo de Barcelona, the venue for Club, among others. 6 THE SPORTS SECTOR IN BARCELONA AND CATALONIA BARCELONA, WORLD SPORTS CAPITAL 7 ORGANISER OF TOP INTERNATIONAL SPORTS 02 EVENTS Since the 1992 Olympic Games, Barcelona has become a worldwide reference Barcelona World Race. and a model to follow in the organisation of prestigious international sports. Property: Fundació Navegació Oceànica de Barcelona Copyright: María Muiña Zurich Barcelona Marathon. The Barcelona Olympic Games cross Championship of Catalonia, Property: R P M Racing were the most important inter- the World Rally Car Championship national event held in Barcelona and the FIM Indoor Enduro World Marathon (more than 18,000 run- BARCELONA WORLD RACE: the ZURICH BARCELONA MARATHON: an and Catalonia. They showed a new Championship among others. ners), the Barcelona Half Mara- first only double-handed non-stop annual road running competition over and exciting city to the world and thon, the Garmin Barcelona Triath- regatta around the world, organised the classic distance of 42,195 km.