"Securing hosting rights to the America's Cup is a prestigious and economically significant prize for any community," Mayor Gavin Newsom said in a prepared statement. "I am committed to the defense of the America's Cup in San Francisco."
A study by the Bay Area Council Economic Institute and Beacon Economics, commissioned by the city and released today, estimated the regatta could bring in an estimated $1.4 billion through spending by racing syndicates, and by residents and visitors on hotels, restaurants and retail services.
It said the benefits would likely extend to neighboring counties as well through visitor and maritime activity.
The event could create about 8,800 jobs, the study said.
Bay Area Council Economic Institute CEO Sean Randolph said hosting the regatta "would be a huge boon for the Bay Area economy."
The 34th America's Cup will take place in either 2013 or 2014.
Oracle CEO Larry Ellison's BMW Oracle Racing team won the previous race in February in Valencia, Spain, on behalf of San Francisco's Golden Gate Yacht Club. The club and the team get to choose the site of the next race.
