Marseille

Marseille, France's second city and a major Mediterranean metropolis, was the European Capital of Sport 2017, in a handover from Prague. It was the first French city to receive the title, which it won in 2014 by beating Sofia in the final. The programme, presented as a concerto in four seasons — self-improvement, sharing, pleasure and excellence — labelled 430 projects out of the 762 submitted and officially opened on 14 January 2017, shortly after the new Stade Vélodrome was inaugurated. The bid drew on the city's sporting weight: around 220,000 athletes, some 1,500 clubs, major institutions such as Olympique de Marseille and the Cercle des Nageurs, and municipal investment of close to 70 million euros a year in sport. The title came four years after Marseille was European Capital of Culture 2013, reinforcing its metamorphosis into an international metropolis.