{"id":43448,"date":"2019-08-30T09:02:58","date_gmt":"2019-08-30T07:02:58","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/cruyffalumni.org\/johancruyffinstitute-2026\/la-vuelta-a-sporting-event-that-sells-brand-spain-like-nobody-else\/"},"modified":"2026-07-07T19:27:45","modified_gmt":"2026-07-07T17:27:45","slug":"la-vuelta-a-sporting-event-that-sells-brand-spain-like-nobody-else","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/johancruyffinstitute.cruyffalumni.org\/en\/the-magazine\/sport-management\/la-vuelta-a-sporting-event-that-sells-brand-spain-like-nobody-else\/","title":{"rendered":"La Vuelta: a sporting event that sells Brand Spain like nobody else"},"content":{"rendered":"<h2>La Vuelta a Espa\u00f1a manages to show 190 countries every year what a sporting event needs to sell epic sport and socioeconomic value in 3 weeks of televised competition with Brand Spain present throughout the race<\/h2>\n<p class=\"thevelop-dropcap\"><strong>La Vuelta<\/strong> is, for Spain, what the <strong>Tour <\/strong>is for France: the best sports ambassador in the country. If there is one <a href=\"https:\/\/johancruyffinstitute.cruyffalumni.org\/en\/programa\/course-in-sport-event-management-online\/\">sporting event<\/a> that allows you to sell the <strong>Marca Espa\u00f1a<\/strong> (Brand Spain) like nobody else, it is road cycling and <a href=\"https:\/\/www.unipublic.es\/\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener noreferrer\"><strong>Unipublic<\/strong><\/a>, the organizer of the event, has managed to find the magic formula so that the epicness of the sport and the socioeconomic return go hand in hand. This 74th edition celebrates 10 years of &#8216;La Roja&#8217;, the red shirt that distinguishes the leader of the race and has become another of its symbols, like the yellow jersey of the <a href=\"https:\/\/www.letour.fr\/en\/landing-page\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener noreferrer\"><strong>Tour de France<\/strong><\/a> or the pink jersey of the <a href=\"https:\/\/www.giroditalia.it\/eng\/\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener noreferrer\"><strong>Giro d&#8217;Italia<\/strong><\/a>. Another nod to the country\u2019s brand. <\/p>\n<p>Innovation, toughness and intensity are the three fundamental pillars on which the route of <a href=\"https:\/\/www.lavuelta.es\/en\/\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener noreferrer\"><strong>La<\/strong> <strong>Vuelta a Espa\u00f1a<\/strong><\/a> is based, and television is its great ally to take the sport spectacle to 190 countries around the world. Improvisation is a term unknown to the organizers of the Spanish tour. For years, they have been releasing a product that host towns, the public and sponsors like, and the detailed planning of the route has made <a href=\"https:\/\/www.lavuelta.es\/en\/\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener noreferrer\"><strong>La Vuelta<\/strong><\/a> one of the most sought-after <a href=\"https:\/\/johancruyffinstitute.cruyffalumni.org\/en\/programa\/course-in-sport-event-management-online\/\">sporting events<\/a>.<\/p>\n<p><img decoding=\"async\" class=\"alignnone wp-image-24850 size-full\" src=\"https:\/\/johancruyffinstitute.cruyffalumni.org\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/04\/La-vuelta-Infografia2_EN-scaled.webp\" alt=\"La Vuelta: a sporting event that sells Brand Spain like nobody else\" width=\"1867\" height=\"3440\" \/><\/p>\n<p>The organizers realized that as soon as they put the focus on a territory that nobody knew, <a href=\"https:\/\/www.lavuelta.es\/en\/\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener noreferrer\"><strong>La Vuelta<\/strong><\/a> came and created an expectation and an influx of tourism that brought wealth. Areas with little economic activity have profited greatly when the multicolored snake has passed down their streets. <strong>Javier Guill\u00e9n<\/strong>, general manager of the race, explains that \u201cin the last 11 years we have discovered more than 30 places where people can go cycling and enjoy other activities. If there is anything that <a href=\"https:\/\/johancruyffinstitute.cruyffalumni.org\/en\/programa\/course-in-sport-event-management-online\/\">sporting events<\/a> demand, it is economic return. We offer promotional return, sport return\u2014in terms of citizen satisfaction because our spectators do not pay for a ticket to see the event\u2014and economic return that, in our case, is not only the amount that the 3,000 people who work in La Vuelta might spend in one night, but the legacy we leave in that territory.\u201d<\/p>\n<blockquote class=\"sht-blockquote alignleft\"><p> \u201cIf there is anything that sports events demand it is an economic return, and we offer a promotional, sport and economic return\u201d \u2013 Javier Guill\u00e9n, general manager of La Vuelta a Espa\u00f1a <\/p><\/blockquote>\n<p>The originality of the race, linked to that touch of innovation, is at its most spectacular at the start: from the night start in Seville, to the one from a boat, or from an aircraft carrier in the port of C\u00e1diz or the internationalization of the race in Holland, when it started from Assen in 2009. This year, the lottery winner was the Las Lagunas de La Mata y Torrevieja nature reserve. The white of the salt lakes in contrast with the pink of the nature reserve, in this stage start of <a href=\"https:\/\/www.lavuelta.es\/en\/\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener noreferrer\"><strong>La Vuelta 2019<\/strong><\/a>, left images that will go down in history.<\/p>\n<div id=\"attachment_24843\" style=\"width: 1300px\" class=\"wp-caption alignnone\"><img decoding=\"async\" aria-describedby=\"caption-attachment-24843\" class=\"wp-image-24843 size-full\" src=\"https:\/\/johancruyffinstitute.cruyffalumni.org\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/04\/Sarah-Meyssonnier-Montan-a-sal.webp\" alt=\"La Vuelta: a sporting event that sells Brand Spain like nobody else\" width=\"1290\" height=\"860\" \/><\/p>\n<p id=\"caption-attachment-24843\" class=\"wp-caption-text\">The white of the salt lakes in contrast with the pink of the nature reserve, in this stage start of La Vuelta 2019, left images that will go down in history * PHOTO: Sarah Meyssonni<\/p>\n<\/div>\n<p>It is estimated that the hotel expenses in Alicante, Benidorm, Torrevieja and Calpe of the 3,000 people that make up the members of the teams, journalists and organization staff of <strong><a href=\"https:\/\/www.lavuelta.es\/en\/\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener noreferrer\">La Vuelta<\/a>,<\/strong> during the previous days and the three race days in the province, have left a direct economic impact of 3 million euros, triple the investment made. And the advertising effect for the <strong>Costa Blanca<\/strong>, a mecca of international tourism, will be around 10 million euros.<\/p>\n<p>The audiovisual value of <a href=\"https:\/\/www.lavuelta.es\/en\/\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener noreferrer\"><strong>La Vuelta<\/strong><\/a> is incalculable. To the thousands of spectators who watch on the slopes of the mountains or along the thousands of kilometers of streets in the towns along the way, must be added the 400 million spectators from 190 countries that connect with <a href=\"https:\/\/www.lavuelta.es\/en\/\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener noreferrer\"><strong>La Vuelta<\/strong><\/a>. It is a showcase to the world powerful enough not to be taken lightly. &#8220;If there is one reason why the <a href=\"https:\/\/www.letour.fr\/en\/landing-page\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener noreferrer\"><strong>Tour de France<\/strong><\/a> and <a href=\"https:\/\/www.lavuelta.es\/en\/\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener noreferrer\"><strong>La Vuelta a Espa\u00f1a<\/strong><\/a> are so sought after, in addition to the sport itself, it is because of our strength as a tourist instrument,&#8221; says Javier Guill\u00e9n.<\/p>\n<blockquote class=\"sht-blockquote alignleft\"><p> \u201cWe view each stage in advance to embellish the television broadcast under the concept of entertainment; in addition to brand, we show product\u201d <\/p><\/blockquote>\n<p>That is why the tour, with an average of three hours per day on screen, requires a huge effort at the production and planning level. \u201cBy having such a large set and 21 race stages, we can go much further than the sporting event, but these sales arguments have to be shown well and have a lot to do with our geography,\u201d says the director of La Vuelta. \u201cWe view each stage in advance. Our commentator locates the tourist points that we want to show in the broadcast, and it is documented and prepared. We do not improvise anything. This allows us to embellish the television broadcast under the concept of entertainment. In addition to brand, we show product.\u201d<\/p>\n<h3><strong>ATTRACTIVE FOR SPONSORS<\/strong><\/h3>\n<p>Spanish geography allows the organizers of <a href=\"https:\/\/www.lavuelta.es\/en\/\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener noreferrer\"><strong>La Vuelta<\/strong><\/a> to add a dose of innovation to the toughness and epicness that cycling already transmits by itself. &#8220;Spain, unlike France and Italy, has a great diversity of mountain passes, which gives us the opportunity to play with different routes and intensity,&#8221; says Guill\u00e9n. The ramp finishes are original and characteristic of the Spanish race. \u201cA mountain stage does not mean that you must climb 4,000 meters for it to be hard. We can make it very interesting with the type of ramp or wall we use. It has a lot of intensity and we can tell a story in 6-8 minutes, very different from what you get from a sprint finish.\u201d<\/p>\n<div id=\"attachment_24844\" style=\"width: 1300px\" class=\"wp-caption alignnone\"><img decoding=\"async\" aria-describedby=\"caption-attachment-24844\" class=\"wp-image-24844 size-full\" src=\"https:\/\/johancruyffinstitute.cruyffalumni.org\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/04\/Sarah-Meyssonnier-Patrocinadores-1.webp\" alt=\"La Vuelta: a sporting event that sells Brand Spain like nobody else\" width=\"1290\" height=\"860\" \/><\/p>\n<p id=\"caption-attachment-24844\" class=\"wp-caption-text\">Arrival of the team time trial stage * PHOTO: Sarah Meyssonni<\/p>\n<\/div>\n<p>And that&#8217;s where the sponsors want to be. \u201cFrom a commercial point of view, this type of ramp sections, which cover between two and four kilometers, are the main attraction for the sponsors. If we generate the story around these points, the main sponsors will want to be there because, logically, it will be the moment of greatest television attention,\u201d says Guill\u00e9n.<\/p>\n<h3><strong>NETHERLANDS REPEATS IN 2020<\/strong><\/h3>\n<p>Cycling has, in <a href=\"https:\/\/www.lavuelta.es\/en\/\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener noreferrer\"><strong>La Vuelta<\/strong><\/a>, a great ally of international reach and its organizers are highly valued beyond the race\u2019s borders. And so it has achieved another of the goals that every <a href=\"https:\/\/johancruyffinstitute.cruyffalumni.org\/en\/programa\/course-in-sport-event-management-online\/\">sporting event<\/a> of reference sets itself: to be recognized as a brand. That is why, even though it calls itself<a href=\"https:\/\/www.lavuelta.es\/en\/\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener noreferrer\"><strong> La Vuelta a Espa\u00f1a<\/strong><\/a>, it can allow itself the luxury of starting in another country. In 1987 it started from Lisbon (Portugal), in 2009 from Assen (Netherlands) and in 2017 from Nimes (France). The Netherlands will repeat in 2020, with Utrecht becoming the only city to host a stage of the three major cycling races in the international calendar: Giro d\u2019Italia 2010, Tour de France 2015 and La Vuelta a Espa\u00f1a 2020.<\/p>\n<div class='programa-destacado-post'>\n<h3 class=\"especiality-mini-title\">MASTER IN<\/h3>\n<h2 class=\"programa-maxi-title\">Sport Management Online<\/h2>\n<div class=\"thevelop-posts\">\n<article>\n<p>The main objective of the Master in Sport Management Online is to train you to use management tools to help you recognize business opportunities, develop strategies, anticipate changes, optimize resources and analyze information judiciously, without the obstacles of time or place and adapting the pace of study to your individual workload and availability.<\/p>\n<p><a class=\"button-in-post\" title=\"MASTER IN Sport Management Online\" href=\"https:\/\/johancruyffinstitute.cruyffalumni.org\/en\/programa\/master-in-sport-management-online\/\" rel=\"bookmark\"><i class=\"fa fa-angle-double-right\" aria-hidden=\"true\"><\/i>Sign up!<\/a><\/article>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n<div class=\"clearboth\"><\/div>\n<p>&nbsp;<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"<p>La Vuelta a Espa\u00f1a manages to show 190 countries every year what a sporting event needs to sell epic sport and socioeconomic value in 3 weeks of televised competition with [&hellip;]<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":3,"featured_media":63646,"comment_status":"closed","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"_acf_changed":false,"footnotes":""},"categories":[227,228],"tags":[],"editorial_type":[],"class_list":["post-43448","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-sport-management","category-blog-en"],"acf":[],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/johancruyffinstitute.cruyffalumni.org\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/43448","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/johancruyffinstitute.cruyffalumni.org\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/johancruyffinstitute.cruyffalumni.org\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/johancruyffinstitute.cruyffalumni.org\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/3"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/johancruyffinstitute.cruyffalumni.org\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=43448"}],"version-history":[{"count":1,"href":"https:\/\/johancruyffinstitute.cruyffalumni.org\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/43448\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":63650,"href":"https:\/\/johancruyffinstitute.cruyffalumni.org\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/43448\/revisions\/63650"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/johancruyffinstitute.cruyffalumni.org\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/63646"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/johancruyffinstitute.cruyffalumni.org\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=43448"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/johancruyffinstitute.cruyffalumni.org\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=43448"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/johancruyffinstitute.cruyffalumni.org\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=43448"},{"taxonomy":"editorial_type","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/johancruyffinstitute.cruyffalumni.org\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/editorial_type?post=43448"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}