THE SPORTS SECTOR IN BARCELONA AND CATALONIA - BARCELONA, WORLD SPORTS CAPITAL
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THE SPORTS SECTOR
IN BARCELONA
AND CATALONIA
BARCELONA, WORLD SPORTS CAPITAL
[Front cover]
View of Barcelona from the Picornell swimming pools.
Property: Catalan Tourist Board
Copyright: Lluís Carro
THE SPORTS SECTOR
IN BARCELONA
AND CATALONIA
BARCELONA, WORLD SPORTS CAPITAL
10 REASONS WHY CATALONIA IS SPORT
01 Sports power: major clubs
and sports practitioners.
02 Organiser of top international
sports events.
03 Top level sports facilities
and infrastructure.
04 Land of sportsmen and women:
talent, training and education.
05 Home of major companies
and leading brands.
06 Headquarter of major foreign
sport companies.
07 Sports tourism: a perfect location
with perfect conditions.
08 Leader on ICT, Health, Design and R&D.
09 The Barcelona brand: much
more than a city.
10 INDESCAT: the Catalan Sports Cluster.
Image courtesy of
the Barcelona brand campaign
by the Barcelona City Council
2 THE SPORTS SECTOR IN BARCELONA AND CATALONIA BARCELONA, WORLD SPORTS CAPITAL 3
PRESENTATION
Since the beginning of the 20th century Catalonia has been very actively in- is Futbol Club Barcelona. It plays a of the sports that have held some of This document describes all the assets
volved in sports, ranging from football to motorsports, and the sports world, crucial role and has become the best their most prestigious international and potential of the sports sector in
ranging from clubs and social participation to companies and entrepreneurship. ambassador of Catalonia and Barce- competitions in Barcelona and Cata- Catalonia and in Barcelona, giving 10
This dynamism culminated in the 1990s with the 1992 Olympic Games, but also lona around the world. Barça is one of lonia. At the same time, Catalonia is strategic reasons WHY CATALONIA
with the internationalisation of Football Club Barcelona, the F1 Championship, the world’s best-known football clubs experiencing a massive growth in the IS SPORT.
and the development of excellent infrastructures such as the High Performance and a regular participant in the UEFA practice of sport and fun runs, with
Centre (CAR). With all these assets, entrepreneurs and sportspeople, a powerful Champions League. Barça players are a local and international participants
and growing sports industry cluster has developed what is a pole of attraction good example on how Catalan sports- in races such as the Zurich Barcelona
for companies and talent. men are among the best of the world, Marathon which has more than 18,000
but the club is also a good example runners, over 40% from outside Spain.
The great importance that Catalan ranch, and the international media. on how foreign sportsmen are trained
society attaches to sport has helped Today, Catalonia and Barcelona hold a here to succeed internationally. Kilian Last but not least, this constant
Catalonia to become a world leader in leading position in sport, propped up Jornet (ski mountaineer and long-dis- spirit of improvement is also shared
this field, making Barcelona the third by several pillars described below. But tance runner) or Pau Gasol (basketball) by the business sector, another
most sport-oriented city worldwide. there is still much to improve and we
As early as 1926, on his visit to Bar- are all working together to strengthen Catalonia is the territory with the greatest concentration of sports
celona, the founder of the modern this leading position.
businesses in Europe. It has more than 500 companies linked to sport, which
Olympic Games Baron Pierre de Cou-
bertin wrote: “Before my visit to Bar- One important pillar is the Sant Cugat represents more than 70% of Spanish production, with a turnover exceeding
celona, I thought I knew what a sport CAR, a facility created for the Olympic
4 billion euros and more than 22,000 employees. This growing sector includes
city was like”. Games. It is one of the most advanced
elite sports centres in the world, a wide variety of industries and accounts for 2.1% of the Catalan GDP1.
With a large capital, Barcelona, and receives top athletes and is in charge
a strong personality, Catalonia has of training national sportsmen and are other examples of local talent, and key pillar. Local sports businesses
always been defined as a sports coun- women. Another pillar and a crucial obvious pillars of the Catalan sports develop around the organisation of
try. The 1992 Olympic Games marked sports facility is the Circuit de Barce- ecosystem. sports events, building and man-
a turning point in the city’s transfor- lona-Catalunya. Located near Barce- aging sports facilities, or designing
mation and had an impact on an inter- lona, it hosts prestigious motorsports In recent years Catalonia and Barce- and distributing sports goods. Local
national level. Catalonia showed the competitions, such as Formula 1 and lona have showed the world a great entrepreneurs combine with the
rest of the world it led the way in the Moto GP, which have an economic organisational capacity, hosting some local headquarters of international
organisation of great sports events. impact worth more than 175 million of the most prestigious sports events. big brands. The competitiveness of
In fact, the XXV Olympic Games were euros a year. Football, handball, snowboarding, this cluster comes from this capac-
described as “the best of the modern extreme sports, basketball, horse rid- ity to combine sport and business, 1
El pes econòmic de l’esport a Catalunya.
era” up to that point by the former With over 160,000 club members, ing, tennis, motorsports, swimming, to attract talent and the atmosphere Consell Català de l’Esport.
IOC President, Juan Antonio Sama- another key pillar of Catalan sport sailing, athletics and cycling are some Barcelona inspires. Secretaria General de l’Esport.
4 THE SPORTS SECTOR IN BARCELONA AND CATALONIA BARCELONA, WORLD SPORTS CAPITAL 5
01 SPORTS POWER: MAJOR
CLUBS AND SPORTS
PRACTITIONERS
Barcelona is the third city in the world as regards club members.
The practice of sport in Catalonia is Some of them are internationally rec-
increasing. The number of people ognised because of their long tradition,
who do sport rose to 50% in 2009, their large membership and their suc-
up from 35% in 1990. In fact, a study cess in competitions.
carried out in 2012 and coordinated by
INDESCAT, the Catalan Sports Cluster, In Barcelona we find the oldest club
put the number of sports practition- in Spain, the Círculo Ecuestre. Since
ers in Catalonia to 63%. This study it was founded, many other clubs
FIATC Joventut.
pointed to a big growth have followed and today Palau d’Esports, Badalona.
in “sports lovers”: people some have a history Property: Catalan Tourist Board
who do sport more than stretching back around Copyright: Cablepress
twice a week. They repre- 100 years. Futbol Club
sent around 20% of the Barcelona is one of
Catalan population and Barcelona’s best global
have led a big growth in ambassadors, with over
fun runs and the level of 160,000 members around
participation. the world. And with the slo-
Lionel Messi.
gan “more than a club”, Barça has Property: Mundo Deportivo
A clear example of the importance won top championships not only as a Copyright: Eduard Omedes
that sport has in Catalan life is the football team but in other sports too, Spanish youth water polo
number of sport facilities registered such as basketball, handball, futsal Swimming: Club Natació Sabadell, the 1992 Olympic Games equestrian championship.
Club Natació Sabadell.
throughout the country: 35,424 sports and hockey. from which as many as eight athletes events; Real Club Náutico de Barce-
Property: UFEC: Catalan Sports
facilities, 14,316 sports clubs, 21 took part in the 2012 London Olympic lona, a reference point in Mediter- Federations Union
recognised national teams and There are other internation- Games, Club Natació Atlètic-Barce- ranean sailing; FIATC
72 sports federations, which ally renowned clubs as well loneta, with more than 11,000 mem- Joventut, the first
are grouped together in the that are inherently linked to bers; and Club Natació Barcelona. Catalan club to win the
UFEC, the Catalan Sports Barcelona and Catalonia in Euroleague Basketball
Federations Union. sports such as football, Tennis: Real Club de Tennis Barcelona, League; the RACC, a
swimming and tennis. which organises the Barcelona Open landmark in the motor-
Catalonia, and especially Banc Sabadell Trofeu Conde de Godó; ing sector; the Cen-
Barcelona, has a large Football: Real Club Depor- and Club Tennis de La Salut. tre Excursionista de
number of sports clubs that tivo Español, the second Catalalunya, the Grup
promote the practice of sport, civic football club in Barcelona in terms Top clubs should be highlighted in Excursionista i Esportiu
commitment, competition and the of membership, and Gimnàstic de other sports to, such as Real Club Gironí and the Sícoris
international projection of the city. Tarragona. de Polo de Barcelona, the venue for Club, among others.
6 THE SPORTS SECTOR IN BARCELONA AND CATALONIA BARCELONA, WORLD SPORTS CAPITAL 7
02 ORGANISER OF TOP
INTERNATIONAL SPORTS
EVENTS
Since the 1992 Olympic Games, Barcelona has become a worldwide reference
Barcelona World Race.
and a model to follow in the organisation of prestigious international sports. Property: Fundació Navegació Oceànica de Barcelona
Copyright: María Muiña Zurich Barcelona Marathon.
The Barcelona Olympic Games cross Championship of Catalonia, Property: R P M Racing
were the most important inter- the World Rally Car Championship
national event held in Barcelona and the FIM Indoor Enduro World Marathon (more than 18,000 run- BARCELONA WORLD RACE: the ZURICH BARCELONA MARATHON: an
and Catalonia. They showed a new Championship among others. ners), the Barcelona Half Mara- first only double-handed non-stop annual road running competition over
and exciting city to the world and thon, the Garmin Barcelona Triath- regatta around the world, organised the classic distance of 42,195 km. held
helped Spain, Catalonia and Barce- At the same time Barcelona has lon, the El Corte Inglés Race (more by the Fundació Navegació Oceànica in Barcelona that started in 1978 and
lona to improve their global image, experienced a big growth in fun than 50,000 participants), the Fire- de Barcelona, which begins and ends that reached nearly 20,000 runners in
thanks to modern organisation runs, with local and international fighters Race and the “Cursa de la in Barcelona and follows the Great the 2012 edition, with more than 43%
and great execution. participants. The Zurich Barcelona Mercè”. Circle line. of foreign participation.
Twenty years later Barcelona is BARCELONA OPEN BANC SABADELL
still proud of this Olympic spirit. TROFEU CONDE DE GODÓ: a prestig-
In recent years Catalonia and Bar- ious 50-year-old ATP World Tour 500
celona have shown the world their Series tennis tournament held annu-
Barcelona Olympic Games
opening ceremony.
great organisational capacity by ally at the facilities of the Real Club
Property: Fundació Barcelona Olímpica hosting some of the most prestig- de Tenis Barcelona (Barcelona Royal
ious global sports events. For exam- Tennis Club).
ple: the European Athletic Champi-
onships (2010), the Barcelona World FORMULA 1 SPANISH GRAND PRIX,
Race (2010, 2014), the X Games hosted by the Circuit de Barcelo-
(2013), the FINA World Champion- na-Catalunya racetrack, together with
ships (2003 and 2013), the Handball the Moto GP Catalan Grand Prix and
IHF Men’s World Championship other competitions.
(2013), the FIS Snowboarding World
Championships (2011), the Tour de
France (2009), the IAAF World Jun-
ior Championships (2012), the Bar-
celona Open Banc Sabadell Trofeu
Conde de Godó tennis tournament,
the CSIO Barcelona (International
Show Jumping Event), the Spanish
Circuit de Barcelona-Catalunya.
Formula 1 Grand Prix, the Catalo-
Property: Catalan Tourist Board
nia Moto GP Grand Prix, the Moto- Copyright: Foto-tècnia fotògrafs
8 THE SPORTS SECTOR IN BARCELONA AND CATALONIA BARCELONA, WORLD SPORTS CAPITAL 9
Circuit de Barcelona-Catalunya.
Property: Catalan Tourist Board
03
Copyright: Cablepress
TOP LEVEL Camp Nou.
SPORTS FACILITIES
Property: Fútbol Club Barcelona
Copyright: German Parga
AND INFRASTRUCTURE
With 35,424 sports areas, Catalonia fact, the wide variety of landscapes
has more sports facilities than any that Catalonia offers makes it the
other region in Spain, which allows the perfect place for any sports activity.
Catalan population to enjoy more than
Indoor trial & enduro
300 different sports activities, offered Catalonia also has a long golfing tra-
event in Palau Sant Jordi.
by both the public and private sectors1. dition and is one of the prime Euro- Property: RPM Racing
Catalonia has world-class facilities for pean destinations for golfers, offering
hosting, playing, doing or training in 38 golf links and 34 pitch-and-putt
any kind of sport, ranging from motor- courses along the coast, in the hin-
sports to sailing, skiing, cycling or golf. terland and even in the Pyrenees.
With 600 km of slopes and 16 ski Motorsports have a long tradition in
resorts for downhill and cross-country Catalonia, the home of a number of car
skiing, there are plenty of options for and motorbike manufacturers, too. It
doing winter sports, while 580 km of hosts the most important motorsports
Cross-country skiing.
this rich motor sport tradition, along the Futbol Salou Sports Complex or Marxa Pirineus.
with the big number of motor circuits the campuses belonging to differ- Property: UFEC. Catalan Sports
here (7 speed circuits, 35 karting cir- ent clubs and universities (Univer- Federations Union
cuits and 32 motocross tracks). sitat de Barcelona and Universitat
Autònoma de Barcelona).
The Mediterranean climate means
there are facilities for all kinds of Finally, Catalonia has several sports
sports, ranging from 15 moun- arenas and stadiums capable of hold-
Olympic stadium Lluís Companys.
coastline with 42 marinas along the events in the world (Formula 1, Moto tain-bike centres with more than ing international competitions in dif-
Property: Catalan Tourist Board
Copyright: Daniel Julián Catalan seafront are the best option GP and the World Rally Car Champion- 200 routes to one of the best-known ferent sports: football, rowing, cycling,
for nautical sports enthusiasts. In ship). World Class facilities such as the skydiving centres in Empuriabrava. swimming, basketball, skiing, golfing
Circuit de Barcelona-Catalunya, the Moreover, there are specialist and motorsports, among others.
1
Catalan Sports Council. Barcelona has
Circuit de Motocross de Catalunya, The resorts for training aimed at inter-
60% of Catalan sport facilities, which
represent 12% of Spanish ones. (Turisme Parc Motor Castellolí and the Idiada national sportsmen and women,
de Barcelona.) Test Circuit are the best examples of plus courses and campuses, such as
10 THE SPORTS SECTOR IN BARCELONA AND CATALONIA BARCELONA, WORLD SPORTS CAPITAL 11
Kílian Jornet.
Property: UFEC: Catalan Sports
04
Federations Union
LAND OF SPORTSMEN AND Josep Guardiola.
WOMEN: TALENT, TRAINING
Property: Mundo Deportivo
Copyright: Manel Montilla
AND EDUCATION
Mireia
Catalonia is home to some of the Belmonte.
world’s best-known sportsmen and Property:
women, but is also known for its ca- Mundo
Deportivo
pacity to attract talent through edu- Copyright: Pep
cation and training in sports: sports- Morata
men and women, managers, trainers,
coaches, designers and sports engi-
neers. Synchronised
swimming.
Catalan Swimming
technical and scientific quality. It is Federation.
one of the most prestigious perfor- Property: UFEC
mance centres on the planet, training
Catalan and Spanish athletes as well lonia but other clubs and federations women born around the world who
as welcoming athletes and teams in different sports have schools that have chosen this welcoming coun-
from all over the world. Today some are actively and successfully training try to live and train in during part
320 men and women from 30 differ- future world champions. of their lives: Andy Murray (tennis),
ent sports train at the CAR facilities2. Lionel Messi and Johan Cruyff (foot-
In fact, 34% of the Spanish Federa- Catalonia is also known for being ball), Fernando Alonso (motor rac-
tion that participated in and obtained the birthplace of former and current ing) and some of the Tour de France
a medal at the 2012 London Olympic leading sports figures, such as Pep winners (cycling). A lot of clubs,
Games came from Catalonia, and 40% Guardiola, Xavi Hernández and Carles teams and individual sportsmen and
of the Spanish team had trained at Puyol in football; Nacho Solozábal, women from all over the world train
the CAR before. Pau Gasol and Juan Carlos Navarro in in Catalonia on various courses and
basketball; the handball coach Valero at training camps, as it is has ful-
CAR. High Pau Gasol.
performance
Joel Gonzalez, Brigitte Yagüe, (Taekwondo), Andrea Fuentes and Ona Rivera, and Manel Estiarte and Roser ly-equipped resorts that specialise
Property: Mundo Deportivo
centre. Tarragó in water polo; Sito Pons and in different sports.
Carbonell (synchronised swimming), the national hockey team, the national Copyright: Manel Montilla
Dani Pedrosa in motorsports; Sergi
water polo team, Mirea Belmonte (swimming) and Maialen Chourrat (white Bruguera and Arantxa Sánchez Last but not least, Catalonia is home institutes. These range from phys-
Vicario in tennis; or Melcior Mauri to different training programmes ical activity and sports sciences, to
water) are a few examples of CAR’s success at the 2012 Olympic Games.
and Joaquim Rodríguez in cycling, and schools for sports professionals sports management, sports law and
The best example for training is the “La Masia”, the training school for Gemma Mengual in synchronised and the sports industry. There are sports technology. Managers, train-
CAR, the High Performance Centre Barça football players, is the best- swimming, and Killian Jornet in sky more than 30 sports education pro- ers, coaches, designers and engineers
which trains elite sportsmen and known private sports school in Cata- running and ski mountaineering, just grammes (undergraduate and post- from top sports organisations and
women. The CAR offers an extraor- to mention a few of them. Catalonia graduate courses) run by more than 10 companies have been born, trained or
dinary infrastructure of the highest 2
Mundo Deportivo. is home too for many sportsmen and prestigious universities and education lived in Catalonia.
12 THE SPORTS SECTOR IN BARCELONA AND CATALONIA BARCELONA, WORLD SPORTS CAPITAL 13
Zurich Barcelona
Marathon.
05
Property: RPM Racing
HOME OF MAJOR COMPANIES
AND LEADING BRANDS
Fluidra headquarters.
The importance of sport in Catalonia and the entrepreneurship that has tradi- Sabadell.
tionally characterised the Catalan population has helped to produce the wide
range of local companies that make up the Catalan sports industry.
In Catalonia there are more than 500 com- Some Catalan companies are also
panies whose activities are linked to sport global leading brands in their busi-
and which can be grouped into 3 different ness. Furthermore, their internation-
sports segments. Some examples of busi- alisation strategy is one of the pillars
ness leadership are provided below: of their business model. In that sense,
there is a strong link between these
Facilities Events Consumer Goods leading brands and the sport they rep-
resent: small and medium-sized com-
panies with very specialised products
sold worldwide.
Two main factors have helped
increase the number of sports com-
panies. The first was the 1992 Olym- Buff.
pic Games. A diverse group of com- Design Department.
panies emerged from the Games that
involved sports facilities (architects, The other key success factor that
builders, managers and equipment) allows these companies to be com-
and sports events. After 2000, the petitive in an international market
new globalisation era and new tech- is innovation. This may come from
nologies have helped to produce technology but also from the defi-
a new generation of companies. nition and implementation of each
These take advantage of technology business model. Moreover, we are
and design but they have also been not just talking about successful
inspired by the growth in the num- sports companies being created in
ber of people who do sport and they Catalonia but also leading compa-
mostly have an international focus. In nies in the consumer market, such as
this group we find companies rang- Mango, Desigual, Puig, Natura Bisse
ing from sports services (tourism or and Tous.
training) to sports products (nutri-
tion, monitoring or social networks).
14 THE SPORTS SECTOR IN BARCELONA AND CATALONIA BARCELONA, WORLD SPORTS CAPITAL 15
06 HEADQUARTER OF MAJOR
FOREIGN
SPORT COMPANIES
Puma headquarters.
Catalonia has a long history as an in- These are some of the reasons why Cornellà de Llobregat.
dustrial and entrepreneurial country. It leading sports companies such as Nike,
is one of the most developed regions Puma, HAVAS Sports & Entertainment,
in Spain and Europe. Most foreign Polar, Isostar, Rossignol, Amer Sports,
sports companies choose Catalonia Honda, Gore-Tex, Euroleague, IMG, Atos,
and Barcelona as their headquarters ASICS and Fox Head, among others, have
in Spain, and even as a major global decided to rely on Catalonia to expand
headquarters, with commercial, R&D their business market. Good examples of
and production centres. this are the recent investments of Adidas
in an ICT team, Rossignol in renewing its
Barcelona owes much of its success in production plant, Atos with its Olympic
developing into a commercial and indus- IT team based in Barcelona, or Fox Head
trial centre to its strategic location and with its new EMEA headquarters.
historically good transport links. Its posi-
tion on the Mediterranean has allowed it Moreover, companies not linked to
to develop one of Europe’s most impor- sport but which are leading companies
tant ports, while its proximity to early in the consumer market also choose
developers, France and Italy, encouraged Barcelona for their headquarters, pro-
the city to grow and become Spain’s duction plants or design centres, for
international trade centre. example, Nestlé, Danone, Unilever,
Image courtesy of the Barcelona
brand campaign by the Barcelona Sara Lee and Massimo Dutti.
City Council
Barcelona is ranked:
The 2nd Best sports city in the world
The 1st European Innovation Capital
The 1st Smart city in the Spanish State, the 4th in Europe and the 10th in the world
The 3rd City the world in number of international congresses
The 1st City with the most congress attendees in the world
The 3rd European city in attracting investment
The 4th European city in international tourism
Barcelona City Council (http://www.bcn.cat/inspira/es/welcome.html)
16 THE SPORTS SECTOR IN BARCELONA AND CATALONIA BARCELONA, WORLD SPORTS CAPITAL 17
07 SPORTS TOURISM:
A PERFECT LOCATION
WITH PERFECT CONDITIONS
Located in the north-east of Spain, between the Pyrenees and the shores of
the Mediterranean Sea, Catalonia has a strategic geographical position that
gives it a Mediterranean climate that is ideal for any sport.
On the one hand, the Pyrenees dom- 150,000 skiers an hour, making them On the other hand, Catalonia’s loca- Views of Cadaqués.
inate the whole of northern Catalo- an ideal place for skiing in this land tion by the sea benefits the region Property: Catalan Tourist Board
Copyright: Marc Ripol
nia, extending for more than 230 km of snow. and its capital, Barcelona, with mild
from the peaks of Val d’Aran to the weather and pleasant temperatures
Cap de Creus, where they sink into Together with winter sports, this throughout the year. Water sports,
the Mediterranean. This natural bor- mountainous country, full of valleys such as diving to discover the amaz-
der between France and Spain, with carved out by rivers, glaciers, natural ing Medes Islands or sailing, are also
summits rising to 3,000 meters, parks and protected areas, is espe- popular among those eager to face
makes all kinds of winter sports cially suitable for activities such as extreme challenges.
possible. With more than 600 km of hiking, with a network of footpaths
slopes and 16 ski resorts for downhill over 5,000 km long. Climbing, As already noted, Catalonia also has a
and cross-country skiing, Catalonia cycling, horse-trekking and a wide great number of sports facilities that
has more winter facilities than any range of activities are also possible are adequate for almost any kind of
Golf Serres. Pals. “Volta” ciclista
other region in Spain. These have in this diverse and charming land- sport, and that are a pole of attraction a Catalunya
Property: Catalan Tourist Board
Copyright: Golf Serres de Pals 130 ski lifts capable of carrying over scape. for clubs, sportsmen, sportswomen and Property: RPM Racing
children’s camps throughout the year.
Finally, there is a set of international
sport events that attracts tourists,
ranging from spectators to those who
want to take an active part. In that
regard there has been a significant
increase in the number of participants
in races such as the Zurich Barcelona
Marathon, in which more than 40%
come from outside Spain. The For-
mula 1 Championship, Barça’s matches
and the Barcelona World Race, on the
other hand, help to promote specta- Cross-country skiiing.
Marxa Pirineus.
tor sports as another great source of
Property: UFEC. Catalan Sports
tourism. Federations Union
18 THE SPORTS SECTOR IN BARCELONA AND CATALONIA BARCELONA, WORLD SPORTS CAPITAL 1908 LEADER ON ICT, HEALTH,
DESIGN AND R&D
Autonomous TecnoCampus
Catalonia is one of the top regions in University of
terms of innovation in Europe, and Barcelona.
its capital is home to leading health,
design and ICT clusters.
Barcelona, which has hosted the
GSMA Mobile World Congress since
2009, was chosen as the Mobile World
Capital in 2011 and will hold that title
until 2018. Barcelona is also home to
an ICT cluster composed of local com-
panies, training centres, research cen-
tres and also ICT multinationals that
have located development centres in
Barcelona, such as Telefonica I+D.
Another cluster that is emerging
around Barcelona is composed of
e-commerce companies such as
eDreams, Privalia, Intercom, Let’s
Printed Electronics.
Cetemmsa
Bonus, Softonic and Atrápalo3. A new biosciences, as most of the bioscience or recover from all kind of sports inju-
generation of start-ups and entre- research done in Spain is carried out ries in specialist centres and clinics.
preneurs is also springing up around in Barcelona and it is an important
these leading companies, some of European hub. As regards sport, we Barcelona is also known for its design
them generating new companies that have the foremost research on sud- centres and its capacity to attract tal-
INEFC. The National
mix new technologies and sports. den death in the world being carried ent from all over the world. The clus- Institute of Physical
out at Barcelona’s Hospital Clínic by ter of institutes, training centres and Education in Catalonia
Yet another important cluster linked Dr. Brugada’s team, or the research companies dedicated to design is one
to sport is the health cluster. In Cat- funded by the World Anti-Doping of the growing clusters in Barcelona. the twelve Catalan universities. One of
alonia we find prestigious research Agency being done by the Anti-Dop- them, the INEFC, is a public university
centres and hospitals dedicated to ing Control Laboratory of Barcelona Together with these clusters, it is cru- devoted entirely to sport. Finally, Cat-
at the IMIM (Hospital del Mar Medical cial to highlight the innovation infra- alonia is also the home of prestigious
3
http://www.lavanguardia.
Research Institute). Moreover, various structures in Catalonia, a network research institutions and infrastruc-
com/barcelona-
metropolis/20111204/54239695785/ sportsmen and women from around made up of eight technology centers tures such as the Alba Synchrotron or
barcelona-comercio-electronico.html the world visit Barcelona to heal, treat focused on different technologies, and the MareNostrum supercomputer.
20 THE SPORTS SECTOR IN BARCELONA AND CATALONIA BARCELONA, WORLD SPORTS CAPITAL 2109 THE BARCELONA BRAND:
MUCH MORE THAN A CITY
Since the Olympic Games, Barcelona has been seen by the rest of the world as an in- Magic Fountain of
Montjuïc.
novative cosmopolitan city, linked to creativity, culture, fashion, art and modernity.
Property: Catalan Tourist Board
Copyright: Nano Cañas
A study carried out by the ESADE Brand Institute called “Barcelona in the Eyes of
Architecture and Design: the perfect
the World” shows how the city is perceived worldwide and its attributes involved.
distribution and design of the Eix-
According to this study, Barcelona has a strong, positive image, linked to tourism, ample area, the Collserola tower, the
Palau Sant Jordi, the Forum building,
which is automatically attached to football, the Olympic Games and culture.
and the constant presence of Gaudí in
Moreover, Barcelona is considered to be the most attractive city to live in from the the Sagrada Família, the Parc Güell,
etc. On the city streets, Modernista
point of view of the 9 countries surveyed. In that sense, the capital of Catalonia
façades coexist with new architec-
can compete with other European cities, such as Berlin, London or Madrid. ture, creating an urban landscape
that unites tradition and modernity.
The values of the Barcelona brand are: Tradition and culture: Gaudí, Dalí, Barcelona is the only city in the world
Miró, Tàpies, Picasso, etc. Graphic with nine buildings classed as UNE-
and visual creation has been an SCO World Heritage sites.
inherent feature of Catalonia since
the Modernisme (Art Nouveau) Knowledge, experience and technol-
period. The work of immortal and ogy: the training and professional
Zurich Barcelona
legendary artists such as these tradition of Barcelona makes the Marathon.
lives on and exemplifies the great city a hotbed of ideas and some- Property: RPM Racing
tradition of the community as a where you can always learn. The city
creative place. is committed to the knowledge econ-
omy, with initiatives such as 22@Bar-
Creativity and inspiration: Barcelona is celona, a strategic project designed
the source of stimuli for a creator. This so companies and institutions from
includes urban design, architecture, the media, medical technologies, ICT
commerce and the bilingual situation, and energy sectors can interact with
as well as the system of activities, knowledge centres such as universi-
daily life, popular and leisure facilities. ties and R&D centres.
Furthermore the city now has many View of Barcelona from
foreign students and this makes it the expiatory church of
Park Güell. La Sagrada Família.
particularly accommodating for new
Property: Catalan Tourist Board Property: Catalan Tourist Board
Copyright: Oriol Alamany arrivals. Copyright: Imagen M.A.S.
22 THE SPORTS SECTOR IN BARCELONA AND CATALONIA BARCELONA, WORLD SPORTS CAPITAL 2310 INDESCAT: THE CATALAN
SPORTS CLUSTER
Energy Efficiency session.
INDESCAT is the Catalan sports indus- INDESCAT represents more than INDESCAT.
try cluster, committed to improving the 50 companies and research centres General Assembly.
competitiveness of the sports industry with an overall turnover of 1 billion INDESCAT.
by developing and encouraging projects. euros, which provide services and
products for the entire sports mar-
A business cluster is a geographic ket: consumer goods, sports facilities
concentration of interconnected busi- and sports events. The main goal of
nesses, suppliers, and associated insti- INDESCAT is to help members identify
tutions in a particular business4. In and tackle new business opportuni-
2009 it became obvious that a sports ties which may come from innovation,
business cluster existed in Catalonia, internationalisation, training or fund-
and that the creation of an organisa- ing. INDESCAT promotes activities
tion would help empower the compet- that foster these opportunities such
itiveness of the cluster and therefore as work groups, seminars or collab-
its companies. After developing a stra- oration agreements with different
tegic analysis, INDESCAT was founded institutions. Since 2010 INDESCAT has
in 2010 as a private association arranged more than 20 projects and it
focused on promoting and strength- has succeeded in helping companies
www.indescat.org ening the Catalan sports industry. start businesses together.
INDESCAT is not a simple association, INDESCAT works closely with ACCIÓ,
but a cluster of companies that share a the Catalan public agency for com-
common language: “sport”. INDESCAT petitiveness, which is currently
members work together, looking for working with 22 clusters across Cat-
new business opportunities and also alonia. It also holds the “AEI” label
helping to ensure its environment is awarded by the Spanish Ministry
more suited to developing sports busi- of Industry, and the Bronze label
ness. Companies of different sizes and for cluster management awarded
Business and Sport awards.
belonging to different segments col- by the European Cluster Excellence
INDESCAT.
laborate on different projects that the Initiative. Finally, INDESCAT is also
cluster coordinates, thus improving an active member of the European
their strategies and competitiveness. Platform of Sports Innovation (EPSI)
and has collaboration agreements
4
Michael Porter in The Competitive with several institutions.
Advantage of Nations (1990)
24 THE SPORTS SECTOR IN BARCELONA AND CATALONIA BARCELONA, WORLD SPORTS CAPITAL 25WITH THE COLLABORATION OF: 26 THE SPORTS SECTOR IN BARCELONA AND CATALONIA BARCELONA WORLD SPORTS CAPITAL 27
BARCELONA, WORLD SPORTS CAPITAL
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