Rise of Empires: Spain.

Chapter 585 Madrid Olympics
When Carlo told Prince Alexander the good news about the series of cooperation agreements reached between the Spanish and Finnish governments, Carlo could clearly see an irrepressible smile on his son's face.

Prince Alexander was understandably excited, as the cooperation agreement between the Spanish and Finnish governments meant that his becoming the Grand Duke of Finland was a foregone conclusion.

The only remaining question is when Prince Alexander will become the Grand Duke of Finland.

Of course, Carlo wouldn't keep such a matter a secret, so he quickly told Prince Alexander that he would become the Grand Duke of Finland in the new year, 1917.

This was certainly good news for Prince Alexander, but becoming the Grand Duke of Finland was only the beginning of his arduous task.

Now that the situation in the Grand Duchy of Finland has been settled, Carlo will not overlook the situation in Estonia, another kingdom under Spanish control.

Unlike Finland, Spain wields considerable influence in Estonia. As a newly formed nation, Estonia's government is a makeshift operation, established with Spanish assistance, and naturally, it cannot disobey Spanish orders.

Of course, like Finland, Spain also made some conditions to Estonia to ensure that the Estonian government genuinely accepted the King from Italy, rather than being forced to accept him under diplomatic pressure from Spain.

Prince Vittorio Emanuele was, after all, Carlo's nephew, and considering that his two older brothers, Umberto I and Duke Amadeo, had treated him quite well, Carlo was very willing to help his nephew.

However, compared to Prince Alexander, Carlo's help to Prince Vittorio Emanuele was not as comprehensive, after all, the latter belonged to the Italian royal family, and there was ultimately a layer between them and the Spanish royal family.

We still need to give Vittorio Emanuele III some room to maneuver. After all, if Carlo does everything, wouldn't it seem like Vittorio Emanuele III doesn't value his cousin?

After finishing all this, Carlo returned to Spain at the end of 1916.

Fortunately, it was Christmas Day in 1916. As was customary, Carlo gave a Christmas speech in the square in front of the Royal Palace in Madrid on Christmas Day, wishing all Spaniards a Merry Christmas. His blessing was met with a large response from the Spaniards present.

After the lively year of 1916, 1917 quickly arrived.

For Spain, 1917 was a significant year: the Olympic Games, originally scheduled for 1916, were to be held in Madrid.

The Olympic Games, or Olympiad for short, are absolutely famous in later generations. They are a major sporting event held every four years for all mankind. Each Olympic Games attracts the attention of people all over the world, and medal winners can become overnight sensations and become national sports heroes known to every household.

In 1916, just after the end of World War II, the Olympic Games were not yet on the same scale as later ones, but they did attract the attention of many countries.

The first Olympic Games were held in Athens in 1896, and this Olympics is considered the beginning of the modern Olympic Games.

Then came the second Olympic Games held in Paris, France in 1900. With France's support, the Olympics attracted some attention.

The third St. Louis Olympics was held in 1904. Because it was held in the United States, the Games did not receive much attention from European countries.

Even the United States and the International Olympic Committee, the hosts of the Olympics, did not attach much importance to this Games. The absence of US President Roosevelt and IOC President Pierre de Coubertin from the opening and closing ceremonies due to unforeseen circumstances added to the Games' somber atmosphere.

The fate of the Olympics only changed with the 1908 London Olympics. This Games were hosted by Great Britain, the most powerful country in the world, and London was the largest and most prosperous city in the world at the time.

The London Olympics attracted more than 22 countries to participate, and it was from the London Olympics that the Olympics truly became an international sporting event, attracting the attention of sports professionals all over the world.

The 1912 Olympic Games in Stockholm, Sweden, successfully propelled the Games to even greater heights thanks to the solid foundation laid by the previous London Olympics.

This Olympic Games had 28 participating countries and 2054 athletes, truly achieving the feat of bringing together athletes from all five continents for the first time. (Eurasia, Africa, America, Australia)
It is worth mentioning that the 1912 Stockholm Olympics were originally planned to be held in Berlin, Germany.

However, due to the sudden death of the German Olympic Committee president in 1909, Germany ultimately relinquished its right to host the 1912 Olympic Games, which was then taken over by Sweden.

The Swedes did not miss this opportunity, and the Stockholm Games certainly pushed the Olympic wave to its peak.

But bad news soon followed. During the closing ceremony of the Stockholm Olympics, World War I officially broke out, which led to the abrupt end of the closing ceremony and left the future of the Olympics uncertain.

Originally, according to the International Olympic Committee's plan, after the Stockholm Olympics, Berlin, Germany, would re-plan the next Olympic Games, which would be held in 1916.

However, as the instigator of the World War, Germany naturally could no longer host the Olympic Games. In addition, the scale of this World War was unparalleled, which caused the Olympic Games to be postponed until 1915.

As 1915 arrived, the World War, which had lasted for more than three years, finally came to an end. With peace talks held in Paris, France, the International Olympic Committee finally began to discuss the arrangements for the 1916 Olympic Games.

Unfortunately, by then it was completely too late to prepare for the Olympics. During the World Wars, athletes from various countries had neglected their training, and many had even been drafted into the military, completely altering their original fates.

Furthermore, almost all countries suffered heavy losses in the world wars, and no country would have the energy or time to host a competition that would not help its national strength.

Just when the International Olympic Committee was about to abandon the 1916 Olympic Games and postpone them for four years in preparation for the 1920 Olympic Games, the Spanish government took the initiative to approach the International Olympic Committee and expressed its willingness to undertake the hosting of the 1916 Olympic Games.

Of course, because there was less than a year left until 1916, the 1916 Olympic Games had to be postponed for a year and held in 1917.

Although postponing the Olympics by a year is somewhat unconventional, considering the impact of world wars, a slight postponement of a year is entirely acceptable.

After all, if it hadn't been postponed, the Olympics would have had to wait until 1920. This would have meant an eight-year gap between the 1912 Stockholm Olympics and the 1920 Olympics, which could easily have caused people to forget the grandeur of the Games and negatively impact their future development.

At that time, the Olympic Games were not yet the well-known competition system they would later become, so naturally they could not give up such an opportunity.

After discussions between the Spanish sports authorities and the International Olympic Committee, it was ultimately decided that the 1916 Olympic Games would be held in the summer of 1917, with Madrid, the capital of Spain, as the venue.

Because Spain helped the International Olympic Committee (IOC) solve a major problem, the IOC also had to provide assistance to Spain to the best of its ability. For example, during the 1916 Madrid Olympics, the IOC had to do everything in its power to help Spain promote the Games and to help Spain host the largest Olympics in terms of scale and number of participating countries.

This also means that the International Olympic Committee cannot simply supervise the construction of Olympic venues by each country, as it has done in previous Olympic Games.

The International Olympic Committee must also contribute to the Madrid Olympics to ensure that the 1917 Madrid Games continue the success of the Stockholm Games five years earlier, rather than allowing the influence of the Olympics to continue to decline.

Spain's demands are not too harsh. After all, the International Olympic Committee certainly hopes that each Olympic Games can be better and better, making the Olympics a sporting event that people all over the world pay attention to.

Since Spain has ambitions to host the largest Olympic Games ever, the International Olympic Committee will naturally help Spain, as it is mutually beneficial for both sides.

Thus, the 1916 Olympic Games were not skipped; instead, they were rescheduled for 1917.

In fact, even with a year's delay, it was possible to hold the Olympic Games in 1916. However, 1916 was only one year after the end of World War II, and people around the world had not yet recovered from the trauma of war. Holding the Olympic Games at that time would not have yielded any good results.

Spain's sports authorities were well aware of this, which is why they firmly demanded that the International Olympic Committee change the date of the Olympic Games to 1917.

Of course, in various official names, this Madrid Olympics is still referred to as the 1916 Madrid Olympics; the only change is the date of the event.

After all, it is a tradition for the Olympics to be held every four years. Even if the Madrid Olympics were held in 1917, the next Olympics would be held in 1920, and would not be postponed by a year.

Carlo Alessandro played a significant role in Spain's ability to host the Olympics. In fact, it's fair to say that it was precisely because Alessandro Alessandro expressed interest in hosting the Olympics that the Spanish sports authorities contacted the International Olympic Committee to discuss the event.

For the Spanish sports authorities, hosting an Olympic Games would not bring any losses, given the government's ample budget; it could even enhance Spain's international profile and increase its attractiveness to tourists and immigrants.

More importantly, hosting such an Olympics would suit Carlo's wishes and please him, which is what some officials wanted to do.

For a monarch like Carlo who wields great power, even if Carlo doesn't give the order, his subordinates will try to figure out his intentions.

Of course, hosting the Olympics would be a good thing for Spain, and Carlo would naturally not try to stop it.

Another important point is that the cost of hosting the Olympics in Spain is not high, and the cost is kept within an acceptable range, so hosting the Olympics only brings good news.

Although Spain does not have a large venue to host the Olympics, the Colosseum could be converted into an Olympic venue.

Unlike the Spain of the past, today's Spain integrates the Iberian Peninsula and Morocco, and the bullfighting that is popular in Spain has naturally spread to these regions.

Bullfights held on the Iberian Peninsula attract a large audience, leading to the continuous expansion of bullrings across the country. Spain now has several large bullrings that can accommodate nearly 10,000 spectators, a capacity far exceeding what it used to be.

The increased audience capacity translates to substantial revenue for each match. Ticket sales alone generate enormous wealth, not to mention the snacks and drinks sold during the bullfights, which sometimes generate even more revenue than ticket sales.

Speaking of this, we must mention the two Coca-Cola companies founded by Carlo.

Today, after such a long period of development, Pepsi and Coca-Cola have become well-known beverage giants in Europe and even the world.

Especially in Europe, people in almost every country are familiar with the Pepsi and Coca-Cola brands, and they are used to the different flavors of Pepsi and Coca-Cola, and have their own preferred beverage choices.

Besides the basic cola-flavored soft drink, the two cola companies have also carried out various innovations over the years.

Orange, grape, lemon, and peach flavored soft drinks are readily available, enriching people's daily lives to some extent.

During the World War, various flavored soft drinks became a rarity on the battlefield. Among the large quantities of supplies Spain provided to the Allied powers were countless soft drinks.

Besides drinking these sodas directly, another popular way to drink soda on the battlefield was to mix them with inferior spirits provided by the government to create a delicious fruity sparkling wine.

This habit spread to the daily lives of ordinary people after the end of the world war, as many soldiers returned to normal life.

Pepsi and Coca-Cola seized this opportunity and quickly launched various flavors of sparkling wine, which were indeed welcomed by a segment of the population.

Especially for women, this flavorful, non-drunk fruity sparkling wine is clearly a more popular choice than wine and spirits.

The introduction of these different flavored sparkling wines has, to some extent, boosted the sales of Coca-Cola and PepsiCo's beverages. Today, these two companies have become Carlo's money-making behemoths, providing the Spanish royal family with substantial revenue every year. This is why Carlo is so wealthy and doesn't care about the cost of hosting the Olympics.

The bullfighting venues have established deep partnerships with the two Coca-Cola companies, and for each bullfight, the two companies will supply a large amount of beverages to the venues.

These drinks are usually sold out quickly. The public is satisfied with the variety of services offered by the competition venues. The venues can earn a commission by selling the drinks, and the Coca-Cola company can also increase its sales and earn revenue. It is a win-win-win situation, with everyone benefiting.

Of course, this tradition will continue during the Olympic Games.

The revenue from selling tickets, drinks, and snacks at the Olympic Games is roughly enough to cover the cost of hosting the Games.

In addition, the Olympic Games bring Spain greater appeal to immigrants and tourists, making hosting the Olympics a sure-fire way for the Spanish government to profit.

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(End of this chapter)