IOC President Says Rio Vote Proves Money Not a Factor

(ATR) IOC President Jacques Rogge says the IOC vote for Rio de Janeiro as the host for the 2016 Olympics proves that money is not “the driving force” in the IOC vote last week.

Among the four candidate cities for 2016, the Rio projection of $620 million in marketing revenue is the lowest. Chicago was tops with $2 billion in revenues forecast for a U.S. Games. Lower revenue also means lower income as well for the IOC, which shares in the take.

Asked at a press conference whether the IOC might be affected by this financial possibility, Rogge said: "We hope not, but it is clear that the IOC in its choice has not chosen -- as it was criticized many times for -- the big money.

“Had we had big money as a consideration, we would have gone to Chicago, that's quite sure. That proves that money is not the driving force in the choice for an Olympic city,” said Rogge.

Chicago was the first city eliminated from the Oct. 2 vote, followed by Tokyo and then Madrid.

Rio organizers have maintained that they are making conservative estimates of the 2016 marketing revenue. Hosting of the World Cup in 2014 was mentioned for its possible impact on Olympics marketing revenue in the report of the IOC Evaluation Commission for the 2016 Olympics.

The Brazilian government is supposed assist the new organizing committee with an infusion of aid to cover the wait for the first tranches of TV and sponsorship money to arrive in a year or so.

Speaking at a news conference at the end of the Olympic Congress in Copenhagen, Rogge said more time will be needed to assess the impact of Rio on IOC revenues.

“Just maybe to finalize it, I don't think personally this will be of a significant diminution of the revenues of the Olympic Movement -- but wait and see."

One early test of the Rio marketing potential will arrive in the coming months as the IOC sorts out its last – and biggest – source of revenue, the U.S. rights to the 2014 and 2016 Olympics.

Since the vote for Rio, Rogge and other IOC staff have held their first meetings with Rio organizers and are now planning for the first official visit of an IOC delegation to the new host city in November.

Under government agreement, IOC member and Brazilian Olympic Committee President Carlos Nuzman will be the OCOG president, while Carlos Roberto Osorio stays on as second-in-command secretary general.

Written by Ed Hula.