What does the public get out of motorsport? / MotoGP

A little geography lesson: Where is the Circle of Aragon? That’s right, near Alcañiz in northeastern Spain, at the foot of the Pyrenees Rivers. What is there? A few castles, memories of knights, not much more. Except of course the race track, which was purposely built in this area. Spanish tourist strongholds look different, and therefore Motorland Aragón, together with MotoGP, is a local visitor that is said to be worth a lot of money to the local government every year.

In the middle of the week it was announced that the contract between Dorna and Aragón had been extended so that there will be a doctor there every year up to and including 2026. So far, only two races between 2024 and 2026 have been guaranteed. Local authorities are paying 8 million euros to close the gap.

In order to justify and argue for this use from public funds, a detailed study was carried out in Aragon on the economic impact of the MotoGP race on the region. The results are impressive and prove that it is worthwhile for the public sector to invest in MotoGP (or other major motorsport events): the added value in the Aragon region is 47 million euros per MotoGP weekend. Each visitor spends an average of 211.20 euros per day, 463.50 euros in total. The GP convoy with its 5,568 team members, organizational staff, employees, etc. stays on site for an average of 5.2 days and adds around 93 euros in added value per person per day.

Added to this is the publicity value that MotoGP races generate in the region. In the case of Aragón that was an increase of 14.9 million euros.

MotoGP’s positive influence on the region can also be clearly seen using the Red Bull Ring as an example if you take a closer look at the venue’s overnight stay statistics. It is not surprising that the number of tourists in this area has more than doubled since the first doctor compared to the non-MotoGP period. What is really surprising is that even during Corona, despite all the restrictions that were in force at the time, there were more guest houses in the community around Spielberg than before 2016! This confirms the sustainability of major events like MotoGP. In addition, MotoGP in Styria creates an added value that is almost 10 percent higher than in Aragon, depending on capacity utilization of course.

You don’t have to be “very good” in mathematics to come to the conclusion that the math really works and every euro invested in the MotoGP weekend in the region returns with interest many times over.