37th America's Cup: Four live bids as hosting rights goes down to the wire

OPINION:

Spain shapes as the next venue for the 37th America's Cup but Malaga is said to be fighting hard against Barcelona as the decision, due on Thursday, goes to the wire.

After some Spanish media anointed Barcelona as the venue – deal done verbally but not yet signed, they said – the Catalan city seemed the likeliest contender. However, yachting sources say Team New Zealand has up to four live bids on the table and that a small delay could even be in the offing to sort it all out.

Cork in Ireland is still hanging in there but appears to have fallen behind the two Spanish cities; Jeddah in Saudi Arabia seems to be the fourth option.

In the increasingly likely event that Spain is named as the venue for the 37th America's Cup this week, it will be a time to ponder lost opportunity, mixed with some admiration, that Team NZ have actually pulled this off.

No one – absolutely no one – wants this regatta to be held overseas in preference to Auckland. But the reality is that Team NZ's best chance of winning the Cup again and remaining a viable franchise comes with a considerable price tag no one in New Zealand – or Auckland – was prepared to meet.

The tired old line that Team NZ rejected a Government offer of $99m is still being trotted out in various arenas. The reality, again, was that most of that was "in kind" whereas cold, hard cash was required.

That cash has not been forthcoming from within this country and many, not least the Kiwi Home Defence (KHD) outfit led by Mark Dunphy, have been waiting for Team NZ to fail. There has been growing anticipation that a seeming lack of progress in finding a venue meant the support, financial and otherwise, was just not out there.

But four competing bids have arrived, even in an environment besieged by a pandemic, the Ukraine war, distinct lack of sponsors and with KHD running strong interference.

Barcelona's bid may well trump them all – though Malaga are said to be scrapping hard. Neither bid is said to involve money from Spain's central government.

In Barcelona's case, it's understood contributions are coming from the Catalonia government, the provincial government, the Barcelona City Council, headed by crusading left-wing mayor Ada Colau, and Barcelona Group, a collection of more than 200 leading companies, entrepreneurs, universities and others with a mission to make Barcelona one of the world's top cities.

Barcelona mayor Ada Colau. Photo / Getty

Auckland's businesses are now complaining, through the Chamber of Commerce, that holding the Cup overseas will not help Auckland's recovery from Covid-19's ravages. Again, however, the reality is that is exactly what Barcelona's regional, provincial and local governments, in tandem with the private sector, are doing.

So is Malaga – similarly funded by a tripartite agreement between regional, provincial and city governments; they have also found sponsors for the event.

Pre-Covid, Barcelona residents were complaining about over-tourism, with Airbnb rates and illegal tourist accommodation pushing up rents to levels that locals couldn't afford; there was widespread unhappiness about relentless waves of tourists. That all ended with Covid and the drying up of the tourism dollar.

Barcelona lost major events – the 2023 Round The World yacht race being one – and again want to be the tourism centre that went from about two million visitors a year in the 1990s to 30 million pre-Covid, although Mayor Colau wants to ensure tourism does not again flood the city to the disadvantage of locals.

Colau is an interesting figure – a (very) left-wing Mayor elected on the back of her fight for local people after the 2008 financial crisis decimated Spain's economy. She was head of a group called PAH which has prevented over 50,000 evictions of Barcelona residents (most unable to meet rising rents caused by the downturn, tourism and other factors).

The question now is, aside from who will win the venue bidding, whether there will be any delays – either in the naming of the venue or in the actual holding of the Cup. Essentially, the venue has about a year to get the infrastructure up and running, as the teams are asked to be in the venue a year ahead of the regatta.

That's another mark in Barcelona's favour as works by the Port Authority – which can be adapted for America's Cup bases – are already planned and approved and the city has experience with a big regatta, hosting the Olympics in 1992.

And then it remains to be seen if some of those aligned with KHD will carry out the legal threats which have peppered progress to this point.