Melbourne has won the bid to host the 2020 World Barista and Brewers Cup Championships.
More than 85 licensed national barista champions from across the world will descend on Australia’s coffee capital when the prestigious coffee competitions take place at the Melbourne International Coffee Expo (MICE) from 4 to 7 May, 2020.
“We can’t wait to welcome the global coffee community to Melbourne,” says MICE Show Director Simon Coburn.
“Australia is a renowned coffee destination, and now we’ll get to present our sophisticated coffee culture to a global audience. If our coffee culture wasn’t already on the world map, it will be after we host the World Coffee Championships.”
Every year, the seven World Coffee Championships head to different cities across the globe, going to the Specialty Coffee Expo, World of Coffee, and other trade shows which are chosen through a solicitation and vetting process designed to evaluate level of community interest, host preparation and support, and suitability under the Events Site Criteria framework.
Just like the host cities of the World Cup and the Olympics, a huge global audience of baristas and coffee professionals is expected to descend on Melbourne for the event, and to explore the city’s unique coffee culture.
“Melbourne is the epicenter of sports, and cultural events. It makes complete sense to have the World Coffee Championships hosted in the city that has led in many ways, the global coffee renaissance. What better choice to host the competitions than a city that treats its coffee as seriously as its sports,” says ST. ALi Owner Salvatore Malatesta.
Unofficially dubbed ‘the Olympics of Coffee’, the World Barista Championship (WBC) is the preeminent international coffee competition produced annually by World Coffee Events (WCE).
The competition focuses on promoting excellence in coffee, advancing the barista profession, and engaging a worldwide audience with an annual championship event that serves as the culmination of local and regional events around the globe.
2015 World Barista Champion and Ona Coffee Founder Sasa Sestic says the announcement is another example of Australia’s coffee culture influencing the world coffee scene.
“The Australian specialty coffee community is among the most innovative and inspiration in the world. We are so proud and excited to once again host the WBC to share our love of specialty coffee with the world,” Sasa says.
Australia will also host the World Brewers Cup (WBrC) competition, highlighting the craft of filter coffee, manual coffee brewing and service excellence. Both competitions involve thrilling, time-restricted performances by the baristas on a stage in front of judges and a packed-audience.
“For coffee professionals globally, hosting the World Coffee Championships is a dream come true. Melbourne hosted the industry’s premier event for the first time in 2013, and to see it return to our city which is so rich in coffee culture, is an honour and the ultimate celebration of the Australian coffee industry,” says Craig Dickson, Managing Director of Veneziano Coffee Roasters. “Australia has a proud history of podium placings in the world coffee competitions, and what an incredible opportunity it will be for one lucky Australian to fly the flag for their own country on the world stage, in front of a home crowd.”
MICE is taking place at the Melbourne Convention and Exhibition Centre (MCEC) until 9 February, the same world-class venue which will host the WBC and WBrC in 2020 over two stages.
MICE is the largest dedicated coffee show in the Southern Hemisphere. MICE launched in 2012 with the purpose to connect buyers and sellers, and bring industry members together in a dedicated space.
For more information on MICE2019 or to exhibit, contact MICE organisers at event.organiser@primecreative.com.au or +61 3 9690 8766.
For more information, visit internationalcoffeeexpo.com
