More than 375,000 spectators watched bullfights in Portugal in 2022
The bullfighting season in Portugal was around this year with more than 375,000 spectators in the bullrings, an increase of 105% compared to 2021, revealed today the Portuguese Bullfighting Federation (PróToiro).
“In the first post-pandemic year [covid-19]the number of bullfights grew by 58% compared to 2021, going from 121 to 191 bullfights and the public increased by 105%, rising from 182,600 in 2021 to 375,200 spectators in 2022”, indicates PróToiro in a statement.
In the note, PróToiro underlined that the sector showed “great resilience and vitality” this year, with “very high” growth indicators, after the pandemic period.
“Relevant data is the fact that, analyzing only bullfights, these increased by 11% compared to 2019 (from 138 in 2019 to 153 in 2022), surpassing the pre-pandemic number”, underlines the federation.
To reach these numbers, indicates PróToiro, the reinforcement of the number of races in the main squares contributed, but also the increase of activity in the removable tourist squares across the country, recovering the activity in several municipalities, representing 20% of the shows compared to 13% from 2019 .
With regard to the average occupancy in bullfights, this was 2,174 spectators, an increase of 35.7% compared to the 1,602 spectators per race in 2021.
“Regarding popular (street) bullfighting such as the running of the bulls, capeias arraianas or rope bullfights, the season was also one of great recovery, with around two thousand popular bullfighting events carried out across the continent and islands of the Azores”, reads the note.
Cited in the statement, the president of PróToiro and the National Association of Forcados Groups, Diogo Durão, considers that this year bullfighting showed “great resilience” and that the growth in the number of shows and the public “shows well the attachment” of the Portuguese bullfighting.
Prótoiro recalls that around 70,000 hectares were dedicated to the creation of wild bulls, promoting the sector “biodiversity and the fight against climate change”.
In addition to other data, Prótoiro reveals that Portuguese cattle ranches declared to “contribute positively” to the trade balance of goods and services, with searches reaching “456 wild cattle”, for Spain and France, an increase of 143% compared to 187 responses sent in 2021.
“Only 13 bulls were imported. In total for 2022, 1,206 bulls were handled in national squares compared to 740 in 2021, an increase of 63%”, indicates the federation.
In the note, PróToiro regrets that consumers of bullfighting shows continue to be discriminated against with the payment of an “illegal rate of 23%” of VAT on tickets, since 2020, when the rate on cultural shows is 6%.
“This undermines not only the full recovery of the sector, but also the support for the social solidarity institutions that depend on it. We recall that the charities and private institutions of social solidarity own about half of the bullrings in the country”, laments the federation.