London named Top Global Sport City for the sixth consecutive Year
04 April 2017
London was today named number one Global Sports City by Sportcal’s Global Sports Cities Index, topping the list for the sixth consecutive year, ahead of Rio de Janeiro, Tokyo, Moscow and Doha, the other cities making up the top five this year.
This year’s sporting highlights in London include four NFL games as part of the NFL International Series, which will be taking place in the Autumn, and the annual festival of cycling Prudential RideLondon. London will also welcome the IAAF World Championships and the World Para Athletics Championships in the summer, with both competitions taking place at the London Stadium at the Queen Elizabeth Olympic Park
Iain Edmondson, Head of Major Events at London & Partners, the Mayor of London’s official promotional company for the city, said: “London is one of the best cities in the world for sporting events, and this accolade is recognition of the city’s achievements. We will carry on working hard to attract elite sporting championships, which deliver strong economic benefit, as well as great entertainment and many opportunities to participate for Londoners and visitors alike.”
Mike Laflin, CEO of Sportcal, added: “London continues to demonstrate it is one of the leading global sports cities with the hosting of the IAAF World Athletics Championships and the World ParaAthletics Championships. Both these events will generate a huge legacy for London and athletics”
In recent years, London has proved a real draw for major sporting events, with a string of high-profile international competitions, such as the Tour de France 2014, EuroHockey Championships 2015, the European Swimming Championships 2015, the Rugby World Cup 2015 and the cycling’s UCI Track World Championships 2016.
Sportcal’s Global Sports Cities Index is a ranking based on in-depth analysis of 730 sports events across 151 categories Sportcal’s Global Sports Cities Index top 100 can be viewed here.
London & Partners Media & PR Team
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Notes to editors
About Global Sports Nations and Cities Index
The Global Sports Nations and Cities Index is based on in-depth analysis of major multisport games and world championships over a rolling 14-year period, covering seven years in the past (including the current year) and seven years in the future. In total, 86 nations and 621 cities have hosted, or are scheduled to host events during this period.
Bids awarded up to and including 19 March 2017 have been included in the April 2017 index.
Each event is given a weighting based on its Global Sports Impact (GSI) Event Rating – this rating is calculated using the latest event data across a range of indicators which measures the size, scale and impact of an event.
The GSI Event Ratings are then attributed to the host nations and cities, producing the Global Sports Nations and Cities Index. A time weighting is given, so that events in the current year are worth 100 per cent of the rating value, while events in previous or future years are worth less.
The April 2017 index further increased the number of events analysed with 730 events across 151 categories, in 81 sports, including summer and winter Olympic sports and Olympic ‘recognised’ sports. The GSI Project and GSI Event Studies Programme aims to engage with more international federations in future in order to include every world championship event of members of the Association of IOC Recognised International Sports Federations (ARISF) within the Global Sports Nations and Cities Index.
For further information about the GSI Project or the Global Sports Nations and Cities Index, contact gsi@sportcal.com
Contact
London & Partners Communications Team
Email:press@londonandpartners.comLondon & Partners Media & PR Team
Tel:+44 (0)20 7234 5710
Tel:+44 (0)20 7234 5800
Email:press@londonandpartners.com