After more than six decades, the International Motor Show IAA will be moving from Frankfurt to Munich. The new concept for the IAA puts the focus on new mobility and aims to appeal to the entire population.
The decision was made Tuesday afternoon: Munich prevailed over the two other finalists, Berlin and Hamburg, to become the new venue for the IAA. A total of seven German cities had applied to host the event.
“Munich has prevailed over Berlin and Hamburg. The three cities that made it onto the venue shortlist all presented highly ambitious and convincing plans to continue to develop the IAA with the VDA (German Association of the Automotive Industry),”
said Hildegard Müller, President of the organizing body, VDA.
“It was a very tight race and I would like to sincerely thank everyone involved.”
The first Munich IAA will be held in early September, 2021.
“Munich is regarded as a leading innovation hub in Germany”
The IAA in Frankfurt was recently struggling with dropping numbers of visitors and protests from anti-car and environmental activists. With the move from Frankfurt to Munich, the automotive trade fair wants to completely reinvent itself and evolve into a mobility platform. According to the VDA, it should be “the igniting spark for the hosting city to evolve into a smart city with intelligent transportation concepts and innovative networking of modes of transportation — sustainably and geared towards meeting people’s needs.”
VDA felt Munich provided the best conditions of all applicants. A statement from the association elaborated:
“As a center of technology and strong location for industry that is home to a multitude of hightech companies, startups and research institutions as well as innovative corporations in the automotive industry, Munich is an excellent partner for realigning the IAA. The city is regarded as a leading innovation hub in Germany with a unique breadth of industries.”
IAA to also be held at the Olympiapark
The VDA praised Munich’s city administration. They have been watching Munich evolve into a “smart city” for years and the city has “exceptional transportation infrastructure and connections to global destinations and is extremely competent at organizing large events.”
Plans are for the new IAA to not only be held at the Munich exhibition center, but also in the city itself: at the Olympia park and other central points in Munich. The different locations are to be linked to the exhibition grounds by a transportation route with lanes that give priority to environmentally friendly vehicles.