Auckland Mayor Phil Goff says the city's residents will be disappointed with the decision to move the America's Cup to Spain, but Team New Zealand's boss is defending the move.
Auckland Mayor Phil Goff says commercial interests had won out in the decision to move the America's Cup hosting out of New Zealand. Photo: RNZ / Dan Cook
This morning, Team New Zealand and the Royal New Zealand Yacht Squadron announced the 2024 Cup will be held in Barcelona.
While the team won the event in Auckland last year, they rejected a $99 million bid from the New Zealand government and Auckland Council to hold the Cup in New Zealand.
Goff told Morning Report that commercial interests had won out, but the decision did not come as a surprise since the team had already rejected the hosting offer.
"Most of us regard the America's Cup as an international sporting event but in fact it's a business venture, and that latter consideration clearly prevailed in this decision."
With taxpayers and ratepayers' investment into the infrastructure and the success of the last round, Aucklanders would feel let down, he said.
"Every Cup challenger has said to me personally 'this was a great venue, we'd love to have it back here, this is the place where it should be' - every contender in the race that is except Team New Zealand, which has some irony.
"We got behind the team as Team New Zealand, we gave it all the support we could, the money was on the table there ... close to $100 million, largely from government, some from council and from the private sector and still the decision was taken to hold the defence of the Cup on the other side of the world.
"We stretched ourselves considerably to create the infrastructure necessary to host the Cup here."
However, Team New Zealand boss Grant Dalton told Morning Report there simply was not enough money invested into holding the event in Auckland to cover costs, and only about a third of what was promised was tangible cash for them.
"New Zealand has put a lot of money into the America's Cup but the primary amount of that is into infrastructure which will be there long after."
Goff agreed on the infrastructure's viability, adding that it would be used to headquarter the World Championship Rally later this year.
Team New Zealand's base at Auckland's viaduct. Photo: RNZ / Dan Cook
He also said negotiations were now underway on the lease for the team's base at the viaduct, because the terms were that if the Cup was not hosted here then the space would be set back on a market rate.
"We're not obviously going to provide rent-free base for a team that's taken the Cup out of New Zealand."
Dalton said he had not spoken to the mayor yet but their lease was not up until the end of the 37th America's Cup, and negotiations were underway.
"We're doing what is best for the team to try and hold on to the Cup, because those councillors would definitely not have an America's Cup ever again if we stay in New Zealand for this edition."
Why the money offered is important
Veteran yachting commentator and three-time America's Cup competitor Peter Lester told Morning Report he was not surprised by the move and agreed with Dalton, that it would not have been possible to defend the title based on the offer made.
"Now, I think they have put themselves in a position where they'll be very competitive, and they'll need to be because the challenges are a up a level, with the backing they'll get and of course the technology that comes onboard with Formula 1 jumping behind three of the teams."
As a team of winners, they understand what is necessary to be the first to defend the Cup three times in a row, he said.
"You are not going to do if you are short on money, and money equates to people. Team New Zealand are a technology company - if you break it down, that's what they are, it's design, engineering and carbon fibre-building and composites.
"Those people don't come cheap and Dalton was telling me a couple of days ago there is a shortage of let's call them sailing scientists, that is the engineers, designers and builders.
"To retain those people and to create an environment where they can strut their stuff, you need funding."
A view of the proposed hydrogen powered America's Cup chase boat from the front. Photo: Emirates Team New Zealand
The team had been forced to make a tough call in order to create the fastest boat with the fastest crew, he said.
"For Dalton to have pulled this deal off, I'm spellbound. The budget he managed to pull together is more than four times that was offered here in New Zealand, you can't hide from those facts."
Dalton adamant funds were not enough to win
Dalton's argument is that an Auckland defence would have ultimately led to Team New Zealand forfeiting the Cup forever.
"What's the point of winning the America's Cup if you give it away and [lose] in the same way that happened in 2003?
"If we thought for one second that we could be competitive with a realistic chance of winning the Cup in New Zealand, then that's where we'd be."
That went back to the problem that the money was just not there, he said.
"I'm adamant that it is impossible to raise a competitive budget, if a budget at all, in New Zealand."
Team New Zealand chief executive Grant Dalton says they won't be seeking funds from the government now. Photo: Photosport Ltd
Goff said the idea that New Zealand would definitely have lost was merely Dalton's opinion, "but I don't think it's shared by many of us".
"We were not going to spend more of our ratepayers' money than what was on the table, we thought we gave a fair deal to Team New Zealand ... but clearly, it wasn't enough."
Team New Zealand would not be seeking funding from the government but part of the hosting fee would go towards them, Dalton said.
Prime Minister Jacinda Ardern said she was disappointed.
New Zealand treated the cup as a national event - and that did not happen anywhere else in the world, she said.
Enough money was put on the table for it to be hosted locally, and Team New Zealand's leaders made a different decision, Ardern said.
But the decision did not reflect New Zealand's capacity to host large sporting events, she added.
She noted the country was at present hosting the Women's Cricket World Cup, and would soon be hosting the Fifa Women's World Cup - two major international tournaments.
What Aucklanders thought
RNZ reporter Jordan Bond was out at Wynyard Quarter this morning and spoke to some Kiwis about what they thought.
He said one man told him it was a disgrace and, considering New Zealand won on its own grounds, it should be held here. The man said he hoped it could come back and suggested there should be a legal challenge.
A woman said she trusted the team knew what was best for them.
Another person said more money should have been offered to try and secure hosting because it would have been important to the country's hospitality and tourism sectors.
Bond said some thought the money was better spent on critical systems, like housing and health.
Asked about New Zealanders feeling let down by the decision, Dalton said his first responsibility was towards the team and the legacy of those before them.
"What do New Zealanders think about an organisation that would surrender, lie down, be run over by a truck and give away the America's Cup that they worked so hard to get if they stayed in New Zealand for this edition?"
Other avenues sought
Dalton said he had sought out the private sector too, for a potential deal to host the Cup here.
"I sat in a meeting some months ago with four significant New Zealand rich-listers and talked about the amount of money. One of them is involved with a school in New Zealand and raising money. He looked at me and said, 'you are joking, that is not here' and he was right."
After New Zealand's last success at the America's Cup, a group launched to campaign against the regatta moving offshore.
Kiwi Home Defence Group was headed by Mark Dunphy, a businessman who offered some of his own money to fund the competition if it stayed in Auckland.
Group spokesperson Charles Finny told Morning Report they were deeply disappointed by the move.
Finny said Dalton did not engage deeply with their offer, and while there was occasional communication with the yacht sqaudron, there was no substantial response to the offer.
"We put a budget to the yacht squadron, because this is ultimately the yacht squadron's decision, and we offered to have one of the big four accounting firms look at our numbers and look at Mr Dalton's numbers and tell us who was correct, they didn't take us up on that offer unfortunately."
