The European Bridge Championship in Riga will take place regardless of whether it receives additional state funding. However, the story surrounding the tournament has once again raised the question of how Latvia supports international sporting events that can bring the country income from tourism.
A few days before the start of the European Bridge Championship in Riga, the discussion is not so much about the game itself but about state support for international sporting events, reports TV3 News.
The tournament will take place at the exhibition center in Kipsala and will gather participants from almost all over Europe. According to the organizers, 1185 foreign guests — players, coaches, and technical specialists — are registered as of today. Additionally, family members, friends, and fans are expected to arrive.
The organizers believe that such competitions can bring significant benefits to the economy. Unlike many other tournaments, the bridge championship lasts almost two weeks, and participants spend a considerable amount of time in the country.
As explained by board member of the LLC "Bridge Academy" Karlis Rubin, teams arrive long before the end of the competitions and stay in Latvia for more than ten days. For example, the Norwegian team will be in Riga for 13 nights. During this time, participants use hotels, restaurants, transportation, and other services.
This is why the Latvian Bridge Federation requested an additional 200,000 euros from the state budget. Previously, the organizers had already received 200,000 euros from the Latvian Investment and Development Agency and the Riga City Council.
The government did not provide separate funding. Instead, it was decided to redistribute 225,000 euros, which will be allocated among the organizers of sporting events on a competitive basis.
The problem lies in the timing. The competition is planned to be announced only in July, while the European Championship starts this coming weekend. This means that the organizers will only be able to apply for funding after the tournament has begun or even after it has concluded.
The president of the Latvian Bridge Federation, Imants Parādnieks, emphasizes that the championship is not in jeopardy. According to him, all necessary commitments have already been made, and the tournament will take place regardless. However, the situation has highlighted the lack of a clear support system for such events.
Representatives of other sports also point to a similar problem. Previously, the Ministry of Education and Science had a separate program to support international competitions, which funded up to ten major events annually. This year, the program was closed.
According to the Secretary General of the Latvian Volleyball Federation, Aivars Platonovs, sports organizations want to see a predictable support system similar to the mechanisms that exist in the fields of culture and cinema.
The Council of Sports Federations of Latvia acknowledges that the current system does not work efficiently enough. They remind that the main support program currently applies mainly to events that can attract at least 5000 foreign visitors, and there are few such competitions in the country.
The chairman of the board of the Council of Sports Federations of Latvia, Vladimir Steinberg, considers the new competition a pilot project. Its goal is to show the government what economic impact international competitions have through tourism, tax revenues, and the development of the service sector.
For comparison, Estonia allocates more than five million euros annually to attract international sporting events, and such programs are primarily viewed as investments in the economy rather than just support for sports.
In addition to the European Bridge Championship, other federations are also counting on competitive funding. Among them is the Latvian Water Motor Sports Federation, which will hold the European Championship on Lake Aluksne at the beginning of July.
The story surrounding the European Bridge Championship has shown that the dispute is no longer about the card game but about how Latvia plans to compete for hosting international events in the future.
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