SPRING | FEATURE
The stage is set for Birmingham
Five years on from its last edition in Australia ’ s Gold Coast , SportAccord ’ s World Sport & Business Summit is coming to Birmingham ’ s International Convention Centre ( ICC ) from 7-11 April . Access hears from organisers on why Birmingham was chosen and how the event will build on the city ’ s Commonwealth Games legacy
Words : Joe Gallop
Fresh from its hosting of the 2022 Commonwealth Games , Birmingham and the West Midlands is set to welcome more than 1,500 global sports leaders and key decision makers to the SportAccord World Sport & Business Summit .
SportAccord managing director Martin Gibbs , who was appointed in 2022 , just before the organisation began conversations with Birmingham , says the city was the perfect fit due to its centrality and ease of access for European delegates , along with its desire to build on the Commonwealth Games legacy .
Says Gibbs , “ The obvious central strand to that legacy is building a pipeline of sporting events . There is no better way of doing that than bringing all the international delegations and rightsholders into the city , so you ’ ve got them there for several days to discuss where they are going to hold their events .”
SportAccord , headquartered in Lausanne , Switzerland , is returning in-person following a four-year hiatus due to the pandemic and the Russia-Ukraine war . Gibbs says the summit ’ s return will fill a gap that no other event in the market is able to fill : “ There is nowhere else that you will see so many presidents , secretary generals and senior managers of international federations in one place , along with the IOC and all the sports business leaders around them . It is unique .”
As for the difference between the Gold Coast edition and this year ’ s event , Gibbs says , “ There are things we change at the event because of where we are . We want people to come to SportAccord and it be recognisable to them , but we also want people to experience the local environment and culture .
“ Being right in the centre of Birmingham is a real plus . The cultural programme that ’ s built around the event that will give them that taste of Birmingham and the West Midlands . It will be good to
The International Conference Centre
see a city based on manufacturing that ’ s modernised itself , but one where you can still feel the past .”
Although still early days , the positive impact of the Commonwealth Games is tangible in the UK ’ s second city . The West Midlands welcomed 141.2 million visitors in 2022 , topping the previous record set before the pandemic , thanks to major events including the Commonwealth Games . The figures represented a 38 % increase in tourist numbers in 2021 , and a 5 % rise compared to 2019 data , which was the last research to be carried out before the tourist industry was impacted by the pandemic .
An independent interim evaluation report also found that the West Midlands economy received a significant boost , with more than half the economic impact generated (£ 453.7m ) benefiting businesses and communities across the region .
Birmingham 2022 also created 9,000 full-time equivalent jobs in 2022 , with
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