Coventry has been selected as the UK City of Culture for 2021 and will hope to emulate the success of Hull, which held the title this year.
The bid team said their plans were “about changing the reputation of a city” as well as hosting a year of cultural celebration.
The other places in the running for the title were Swansea, Paisley, Stoke-on-Trent and Sunderland.
Coventry’s bid team said the city had “constantly reinvented itself to survive”.
It has suffered from the decline of its status at the heart of the British motor industry, and was devastated by bombing during World War Two.
It will hope to learn from Hull, whose status as UK City of Culture has boosted the local economy by an estimated £60m. Hull has also seen more than £1bn of investment since being chosen to hold the 2017 title four years ago, and the year’s artistic programme has been a hit with both residents and critics.
Laura McMillan, manager of the Coventry City of Culture Trust, said the economic impact would “be huge for the city and the West Midlands”.
“This is a win for Coventry, a win for young people and a win for diversity,” she said.
As part of the prize, Coventry will have access to a £3m Heritage Lottery Fund grant.
The UK City of Culture scheme is separate from the European Capital of Culture. The UK was due to have a turn choosing a city to hold that title in 2023, with Leeds, Dundee, Milton Keynes, Belfast/Derry and Nottingham all bidding.
But the European Commission recently confirmed that the UK will lose the right to have a host city after it leaves the EU in 2019.
