"It's already difficult to attract spectators": Italian organizer worried "pay-to-watch" could be cycling's swan song

Cycling is a sport with limited circulation of resources, mainly financial. At the moment, a future of any team is exclusive in the hands of its sponsors who generate absolute majority of its budget. One way to change this fragile balance is by finding a new source of income. In particular, what is being brought up is making the biggest races pay-to-watch, with money going back to teams whose future can therefore be secured even without a super-sponsor which can be hard to come by.

"I'm against it," tells ExtraGiro promoter director Marco Selleri in an interview for SpazioCiclismo. "It's already difficult to attract spectators outside of the Giro d'Italia, Milano-Sanremo, and the Lombardy region. Emilia is somewhat saved by this beautiful finale in San Luca, which helps attract spectators."

At the Veneto Classic, a VIP zone was set up on the Tisa climb with a big screen, a DJ set, and a food stand costing €10, Filippo Pozzato explained to SpazioCiclismo how putting a prizetag on tickets could work. And it's not rare for races such as Tour of Flanders, or Tour de France to set up similar fanzones. However attracting paying crowds to a race might prove difficult for many of the smaller races.

"For the others, it becomes difficult," Selleri notes, contrary to his compatriot Paolo Bettini. "I don't think it's the cure for the problem. If you read the history of our sport, you understand that initially all the races, except for the most important stage races, were born out of passion and not work. It's obvious that times have changed, there are many more costs than several years ago, and consequently the organizer has to struggle a little more."

"If I have to rethink cycling ergonomics," continues the experienced organizer, "I'd put teams and riders first, along with organizers. All of them have to find funding. It's an intrinsic issue: like rain, under the organizers' umbrella, we have to raise money for the UCI, FCI, and taxes. And then the teams have to pay their salaries."

"Except for RCS, which has global visibility with the Giro, Sanremo, and Lombardia, we don't have a large crowd. For me, the crowd should come for passion, just as the organizer should organize for passion, without losing money. Any extra money that comes in should be used to save for when visibility and sponsorships decline."

According to Marco Selleri, the money for fans' tickets could be used to help develop Italian cycling: "This year we were fortunate to have a Professional Cycling League led by Roberto Pella with important initiatives. The resources should be spent for the good of cycling."

"But if we have to charge for tickets, then we might as well have the public get a Cycling Federation membership card. Our youth cycling is in crisis, for many reasons. We are an industrialized country, the road system has changed, parents prefer to have their kids play tennis or soccer. Our fans are passionate: it's not right to take money from the pockets of people who could pay for instructors."

The 'Tour of Flanders' model is therefore not viable: "I'm strongly opposed to making fans pay for tickets. I've seen the last five Tours of Flanders: if you want to pay, you go to the hospitality areas for 400 euros, otherwise you can sit along the walls for free."

"In my opinion, charging can only be a temporary cure. You can try and see what happens, but it won't solve the current problem, where raising funds is critical for everyone. I'm not against the other organizers; the nice thing is being able to compare ideas and try to explore them as thoroughly as possible. We have a league ready to support the professionals."