A successful bid for a World Rally Championship stage could earn more than 20 million euro for the local economy, according to the results of a study by the Institute of Technology, Sligo, and the University of Ulster.
Rally Ireland, a joint initiative of Fáilte Ireland and the Northern Ireland Events Company, was found to have raised 2.4 million euro during its pilot event last October.
If Rally Ireland qualifies for a round of the World Rally Championship from 2007, it would be the single largest annual sporting event on the island attracting 200,000 spectators and over 770 million TV viewers in more than 150 countries. Rally Ireland 2005, which took place in October 2005, received television coverage in 61 countries.
Seán O’Connor, co-promoter of Rally Ireland says he believes that the economic benefits in terms of a WRC event, as well as the WRC qualifier event in March could be huge: "Based on these findings, we believe that Rally Ireland 2006 (which runs from Friday, 10th to Sunday, 12th March) will double the economic impact of the 2005 event, generating an economic benefit to the region of over EUR5 million."
Rally Ireland 2006 is once again taking place in the North West, with Sligo City as the host city, and the Service Park situated at Enniskillen Airport. The rally will run through Fermanagh, Sligo and Leitrim again and this year extends into Tyrone and Donegal.
O’Connor is keen to stress, however, that if Ireland is successful in securing WRC status, the benefits will be even greater. "When we consider that a round of WRC series will attract 100,000 live spectators and a minimum of 20,000 bed nights, this would translate into direct expenditure by visitors in the region of EUR12 million. In addition, because WRC is an annual series, this income is guaranteed year on year."
"We can also add to that the indirect benefits of global exposure to an audience of over 770 million and growing and the true economic benefit is likely to be closer to the figure of EUR29 million per year," he concluded.
