Golf tourism, a business of 5,600 million euros a year

Golf tourism is a profitable business that doesn’t just revolve around the sport itself but its turnover, according to Luis Nigorra, president of the Spanish Association of Golf Courses, generates 5,600 million a year, a figure that directly affects other sectors such as hospitality and transportation.

The Club de Campo Villa de Madrid is decorated to host the Spanish Open, a competition in which its main star, Jon Rahm, attracts the eyes of thousands of spectators who follow his steps on the pitch day- day.

In the 2021 edition, the Spanish Golf Open, also held at the Villa de Madrid Country Club, attracted 42,371 spectatorswhere 12,135 attended the final day where Spaniard Rafa Cabrera Bello was proclaimed champion.

“7 out of every 8 euros brought by a golf tourist, whose main reason for coming to Spain is to practice this sport, goes to other sectors such as hotels, taxis, restaurants or shops. The Acciona Open de España is a great tournament and in addition a fantastic sporting event it also shows that golf is a sustainable sport from a social, economic and environmental perspective, even with negative emissions“, declared Gonzaga Escauriaza, president of the Royal Spanish Golf Federation, in a press conference.

For Luis Nigorra, president of the Spanish Association of Golf Courses, “tourism related to this sector leaves 5,600 million euros, which means that it is a great wealth multiplier“.

“Spanish fields have 96% indefinite contracts, 94% full time, and in addition, directly or indirectly, golf in our country provides 120,000 jobs“, he pointed out.

Aside from the generation of wealth, one of the most criticized aspects of the golf world is its effects on the environment.

“We want people to know the truth about this water and golf course issue. The water used in golf is mostly recycled, from wells that are not potable and have no alternative use. Therefore, it is a waste water that would otherwise be thrown away. When you talk about drought, you are unfair to golf,” Escauriaza commented.

For Gerard Tsobanian, CEO of Madrid Trophy Promotion, the “idea of ​​setting up a sustainable tournament, because we also want the Madrid tennis tournament to be in the future, appeared three years ago”.

“This is a long process that we take very seriously. Our philosophy is to do things well or not do them at all. We have worked with a sector specialist like Acciona and its engineers to advise us. Sustainability is not a fashionable issue, we must contribute to find solutions,” he said.

“This is an event where there are no plastic bottles. the cars are electricno hybrids at all, no paper and recycled billboards,” said Tsobanian.