The 2023 UCI Cycling World Championships brought around £4.5 million of economic benefits to the Stirling area, as well as sporting, social and cultural gains.

Data from event organisers found the economic benefits were more than 10 times the  budget of £350,000 committed by Stirling Council to the event, the Finance, Economy and Corporate Support Committee was told on Thursday, 11 April 2024.

Event organisers initially advised Stirling Council to expect an additional 20,000-25,000 visitors to the city for the Individual Time Trials over three days from 9-11 August 2023.

However, three times as many visitors – 74,935 people – were recorded in Stirling than the week before (192,000 against 117,000), with the city welcoming almost 80,000 people on the final day, Friday 11 August, alone.

The latest figures come after a report from Ernst and Young found the overall event, which saw 13 world championships contested across seven events, realised a total spend across Scotland of £220 million.

It was hailed as the biggest cycling event ever and data for Stirling also found:

• The UCI athlete family stayed for more than 1,000 bed nights in Stirling at an average cost of £106 per night, with a daily spend on non-accommodation recorded at £52.60 each day

• More than 2,000 hours of action from the Individual Time Trials was broadcast worldwide, showcasing Stirling to a global audience of almost 50 million

• Including the road races – three of which passed through the local area – Stirling featured in almost 5,000 hours of broadcast and a cumulative television audience of almost 140 million

• Stirling-focused content on the Cycling World Championships’ social media channels had a global reach of 70.9 million

As part of a legacy building project, there were a range of community programmes launched before, during and after the UCI Cycling World Championships involving communities in areas such as Killin, the Trossachs, Raploch, Bannockburn, Cowie, Fallin and Throsk.

Councillors also heard a summer cycling and outdoor adventure campaign will be launched by the Council this summer to take advantage of the feelgood factor from the event and promote cycling tourism, worth £300 million to the Scottish economy, in the Stirling area.