Valencia Marathon exceeds its pre-pandemic figures and generated tourist spending of 27 million in 2022

The Valencia Marathon Trinidad Alfonso 2022 is back to normal after two years of limitations imposed by the COVID-19 pandemic and it has managed to surpass its economic impact figures for 2019. The event, which was held without restrictions on 4 December last year, brought in around 27 million euros (€26,852,359) in tourist spending to Valencia and the surrounding area, which represents an increase of 12.8% in real terms compared to 2019.

This significant increase can be explained by the strong participation of foreign runners who, for the first time, outnumbered Spanish runners. In 2022, the number of foreign runners totalled 14,400 people, representing 52% of the total, compared to 35% in 2019. Participants from other countries generate a higher individual expenditure, with an average daily spend of 136.2 euros, compared to the 116 euros spent by Spanish runners.

According to the Economic Impact Report on the event prepared by the Valencian Economic Research Institute (Ivie), the organisers spent 5.8 million euros on the 42nd Marathon, 3.4% more than in 2019. This means that for every euro spent on staging the event, 4.6 euros of tourist spending has been generated, a clear indicator of the multiplier effect that the marathon has for the Valencian economy.

Of the 5.8 million euros in costs associated with staging the Valencia Marathon 2022, 41% is financed by sponsors, 48% by the runners’ registration fees and 11% comes from other income from various activities and contributions from public institutions, such as Valencia City Council, which is a co-organiser of the event together with Sociedad Deportiva Correcaminos.

The 32.7 million euro total expenditure associated with staging the event combined with the money spent by the participants and their companions generate a total impact on the Valencian economy (company sales) amounting to 58.6 million euros. This translates into a real impact on the income of the Valencian province (value added or GDP, i.e. wages, salaries and company profits) that in 2022 came to 17.4 million euros, 5.2% more than in 2019 in real terms.

Therefore, for every euro of initial expenditure invested in staging the event, 3 euros of income (GDP) have been generated in the Valencian economy. In addition, there has also been an increase in the impact on employment, generating the equivalent of 571 full-time jobs per year, an increase of 9% compared to 2019. This leveraging effect has been growing and, in the last decade, the Marathon’s impact on the province of Valencia has multiplied by almost 9 times, in the case of income generated, and by 11 times, in the case of employment.

Fiscal impact: 9 million euros for the public coffers

The latest Ivie report also includes an analysis of the fiscal impact of the Marathon, as both the expenses associated with its staging and the money spent by the participants and their companions increase tax revenue through taxes and social security contributions. This is true both directly, as expenditure subject to different types of taxation, and indirectly and induced, through increased productive activity and consumption in the region. In total, the event contributed 9 million euros to the public coffers, which means that for every euro spent on the organisation, 1.5 euros were generated in taxes collected.

Of this 9 million in revenue collected by the public administrations, 11.7% comes from taxes borne and/or collected directly from the event’s organising committee, while the remaining amount is generated indirectly and is induced by this initial expenditure and by the arrival of the runners and their companions.