America’s Cup economic impact cut in half

The America’s Cup will pump approximately $780 million into the Bay Area economy, generate about 5,500 jobs and lead to about $14 million in revenue for San Francisco, according to a soon-to-be-published report.

“This is a good news story,” said Stephen Barclay, CEO of the America’s Cup Event Authority, who has seen a copy of the Beacon Economics study expected to be released Tuesday.

The numbers are smaller than those first touted by many city leaders when they sought to bring the America’s Cup to San Francisco.

A 2010 study by Beacon Economics predicted the event could pump as much as $1.4 billion into the Bay Area economy and generate some 8,800 jobs. That previous study also assumed more than a dozen teams would participate in the America’s Cup. – SF Business Times, read on