Tour de France 2024, the stages in Italy are worth gold: stratospheric related activities, it will cost 8 million but will earn over 10 times more

According to a study commissioned by the Emilia-Romagna region, the tricolor ‘Grand Dèpart’ will generate a direct induced effect of 59 million euros (of which 29 million in the region alone), to which must be added other indirect benefits, at a national level, for 47 million, with another 13 million for companies in the ‘made in Italy’ cycling sector. It is also estimated that there will be around 300,000 guests in hotels – half of which in Emilia-Romagna – and 1.8 million spectators along the roads.

With over 200 TVs connected from all over the world, 1.8 million spectators present along the route and more than 300 thousand guests in hotels for the 3 stages, the direct impact will exceed 120 million euros. Then we must add the return linked to the international visibility of the Tour, still the third most followed sporting event in the world, after the Olympics and the football world championships.

(Yes, but the Olympics and the football World Cup are held every 4 years, the Tour de France every year, it is in fact the most followed sporting event in the world).

And all this is done by the Tour organizers to pay homage to the historic Italian champions:

The historical anniversary is the centenary of the triumph of Ottavio Bottecchia, the first Italian to win the Tour back in 1924.

he was also the first cyclist ever to wear the yellow jersey continuously from the first to the last stage.

The second stage starts from Cesenatico, the hometown of Marco Pantani, the last to achieve the historic Giro-Tour double in 1998

Finally, the Piedmont of Fausto Coppi, the first ever to achieve the same double in 1949. After 75 years, the French race pays homage to Coppi with a passage in his Tortona and with a Côte dedicated to him.

Let’s console ourselves that football is not the only thing that exists 🙂