Twelve boats, each manned by two or three fishermen, are getting 275 euros ($372) per day for the 44 scheduled days of competition, said Jose Ramon Domingo, president of Valencia's Union of Fishermen. A fisherman would normally earn as little as 300 euros per week, he added.

"We're quite happy with the financial agreement," Domingo said in a phone interview today. "We have no intention of blockading the port."

It's one of the details of the biggest spends on the 156-year-old America's Cup by a host city. Valencia, seeking to promote itself as a tourism venue, has transformed its run-down port zone, expanded its airport, improved roads and even put the competition emblem on manhole covers.

Most of the $2.9 billion cost is being met by Valencia's regional government, with the central government and municipal authority also helping out.

The five-week America's Cup qualifying competition began April 20. The four semifinalists are the U.S.'s BMW-Oracle, Italy's Luna Rossa, Spain's Desafio Espanol and Team New Zealand. The winning challenger will face Switzerland's defending champion Alinghi from June 23.