In the Olympic movement, one person's business does not always make another person happy. By signing a “historic” agreement with the peer-to-peer accommodation platform Airbnb, the IOC has further enriched its war chest. But it also plunged Anne Hidalgo into cold anger.
The facts, first. Announced since the beginning of the month by an indiscretion, the arrival of the American giant Airbnb within the IOC's TOP global marketing program was made official on Monday November 18 in London. Thomas Bach and Joe Gebbia, co-founder of Airbnb, exchanged a handshake to seal their new union.
Both men remained silent when asked about the amount of the deal. According to estimates, it would reach $500 million.
The partnership will extend until 2028. It will cover five editions of the Olympic and Paralympic Games: Tokyo 2020, Paris 2024 and Los Angeles 2028 for the summer, Beijing 2022 and Milan/Cortina 2026 for the winter. Airbnb enters through the front door.
The Californian company was already present in the Olympic world. In particular, it supported the organizing committee for the Rio 2016 Games as the official platform for private housing. But by joining the IOC TOP program, it changes dimension.
According to the official version, the arrival of Airbnb should benefit everyone. The agreement is supposed to allow a “ reduced costs for Games organizers and stakeholders. " How ? Limiting " the need to build new accommodation infrastructure for the Games period”. Doubtful.
Still according to the official version, Airbnb will allow “ generate direct income for hosts and local communities. » The American is also supposed to work with the IPC to “ encourage the development of accommodation adapted to people with disabilities or those with accessibility needs. » In reality, the realization promises to be difficult.
The IOC and Airbnb also announce the launch of a new initiative, called “Airbnb Olympic Experiences”. Launched at the beginning of 2020, it should make the hosting activity and its benefits accessible to athletes around the world. The experiences in question can be available in multiple forms, from training with an Olympic athlete to discovering a city with a top athlete. Both parties are expected to very soon offer assistance and training to athletes wishing to embark on the adventure.
Finally, the agreement announced Monday, November 18 provides for Airbnb’s support for the IOC in its commitment to refugees around the world. The two partners assure that they want to develop long-term aid programs for refugees. Cool.
In Paris, the news should have been celebrated with champagne and party favors. Less expenses, more income for future landlords… A godsend? Not for Anne Hidalgo. The mayor of the capital did not wait for the signing of the agreement to write to Thomas Bach and express her hostility.
“By subtracting a significant number of accommodations from Paris, Airbnb is a factor in increasing the price of rents and worsening the shortage of accommodation on the rental market, penalizing all Parisians and, in particular, the middle classes, explains Anne Hidalgo in her letter to the IOC President. The consequences are sometimes measured at the scale of buildings and streets, when it is not entire neighborhoods that are affected, generating nuisance for local residents, destabilizing local commerce and severely competing with traditional hotels. »
Last February, Paris City Hall took Airbnb to court. The American platform risks a fine of 12,5 million euros for having put 1.000 unregistered accommodations online. At the same time, the amount of fines targeting owners of illegal tourist rentals amounted to 2,1 million euros last year.
Anne Hidalgo does not intend to stop with this letter alone. According to Emmanuel Grégoire, the first deputy, she “ undertakes to organize a referendum among Parisians, immediately after the elections, probably in the summer, in order, in consultation with them, to define the right conditions for using Airbnb. The question will be asked in each neighborhood, because obviously the reality is not the same in each neighborhood"
After having done it for Total, Anne Hidalgo wants to take the road to Airbnb. In the first case, she engaged in a standoff with the COJO Paris 2024. She emerged victorious. This time, she attacks the IOC. The opponent looks tougher.
Jean-François Martins, the deputy for Sports and Tourism for the city of Paris, suggested it on Monday November 18 on his Twitter account: “ It is not up to us to assess the IOC's partnership strategy. It is independent of Paris 2024. However, we cannot imagine any other option than where the IOC sponsors will respect the laws of the host cities of the Games. For Airbnb, there is still a long way to go"
The recent episode of moving the marathon and the march from Tokyo to Sapporo, imposed on the Japanese against the wishes of Yuriko Koike, the governor of the capital, demonstrated the omnipotence of the IOC over control of the Games. Anne Hidalgo knows it. But she wants to fight. Bold.
