Doubts about the future of the international event with the greatest economic impact organized in Barcelona are cleared. The Mobile World Congress (MWC) has ratified its commitment to the Catalan capital by extending its permanence contract until 2030. "Barcelona is much more than the city where the MWC is held," summarized John Hoffman, CEO of GSMA, the organizing entity of the technology congress. "The city is so linked with the MWC that I find it difficult to think of one and not the other," added GSMA Director General, Mats Granryd.
The Mobile organizers thus put an end to the multiple and constant speculations about its continuity in Barcelona. GSMA's contract with the city was valid until 2024, after having extended it by one year with the cancellation of 2020 due to the imminent arrival of the coronavirus crisis. "Recent global circumstances have created some of the most difficult challenges we have faced at MWC, and the strength of our partnership with local stakeholders has been fundamental to our ability to recover the event," Granryd explained. This shared commitment to move forward despite the global shutdown resulted in a small summer edition in 2021, which tested how to organize massive events complying with strict security protocols, followed by the return to practical normality this year with more than 60,000 attendees.
It has not been an easy road to get here. The years prior to the pandemic were marked by the political crisis and the Mobile always became the best scenario to highlight discrepancies. But the facilities provided by Fira de Barcelona and the growth possibilities foreseen with its expansion have been consolidating a path that began in 2006 and has grown over the years. "Not only have we grown the event since we moved to Barcelona, but we have developed it to include a complete ecosystem. The hospitality and people of the city and the authentic partnership we experience at all levels mean that Barcelona is an intrinsic part of what GSMA wants to create through MWC," Hoffman remarked.
One of the most palpable pieces of evidence of this union has been the Mobile World Capital Barcelona (MWCapital) foundation, which reaches its tenth anniversary this year and which, with the extension of the contract, also extends its permanence in the city. "The excitement generated around the MWC extends through MWCapital. These activities provide a legacy for local, regional, and national communities and citizens. We are delighted with GSMA's decision to remain in Barcelona," said the president of Fira de Barcelona, Pau Relat. "This decision consolidates Barcelona as a world capital of technological innovation, to generate and attract digital talent, and to foster technological humanism," they added from the foundation. In the midst of this renewal of alliances, MWCapital replaced its CEO a few weeks ago, with Carlos Grau giving way to Francesc Fajula and a new stage.