New York knocks London off top spot as sporting capital of the world

No1: Anthony Joshua’s first fight against Andy Ruiz Jr was held in the Big Apple
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London has been pipped by New York as the sporting centre of the world.

The capital had held the honour for the past seven years, but was knocked off the top spot in the latest results from Burson Cohn & Wolfe’s 2020 Ranking of Sports Cities.

London took over top spot after hosting the 2012 Olympics, but its status has been affected by losing a series of key events. Tennis’s ATP Finals are moving away from the city after this year, NBA’s European basketball games have switched to Paris for this season and the likes of heavyweight boxers Anthony Joshua and Tyson Fury have looked more towards the US and Saudi Arabia for their bouts.

New York hosted the first heavyweight encounter between Anthony Joshua and Andy Ruiz Jr last June (below) and the Big Apple, like London, is home to a raft of sports teams, including the Yankees (baseball), Rangers (ice hockey), Knicks (basketball)and Red Bulls (football).

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BCW managing director Lars Haue-Pedersen said: “This year’s results confirm the trends we have been observing for some time. The cities whose image are largely associated with sports are either hosting major ­international sporting events or are home to renowned professional sports teams that promote the city’s name week after week.

“It is also interesting to note that the many smaller cities making their way up the ranking have developed smart strategies that make full use of the power of sport to raise their profile.”

The award evaluates the 50 leading sporting cities in the world based on each city’s association with sport, combined with perceptions from ­international sports federations and international sports media, which is tracked with societal trends.

Paris, which is set to host the summer Olympics in 2024, lies third, ahead of Los Angeles and Lausanne, with Tokyo, the venue for this summer’s Olympics and Paralympics, in sixth.

Despite the fall, a spokesperson for the Mayor of London said: “London is without doubt one of the greatest ­sporting cities in the world and, as Europe’s global city, attracts sports fans from across the continent.

“With seven games at the upcoming Euro 2020, including both semi-finals and the final — as well as more NFL (American football) and MLB (baseball) matches and a host of other annual events, such as Wimbledon, Test cricket and the London Marathon, Londoners have a huge amount of world-class action to look forward to this year.”

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