Amsterdam might attract 1.2 million young tourists a year but it lacks the ambition to attract foreign students and is missing out on talent and income, according to a new report out on Thursday.

The Dutch capital is bottom of a list of nine European student cities in a comparison study. Just 6,750 of the city’s students – or 6.6% – come from outside the Netherlands, the report says.

By contrast, 34% of students in Brussels come from outside Belgium as do 31% of London students and 20% of those in Berlin.

Maastricht

Amsterdam also performs poorly compared with other Dutch universities. Some 10% of Groningen’s student body comes from abroad as does 14% of Delft students and 38% of those in Maastricht.

The situation is likely to worsen, the report by the higher education research institute The Class of 2020 says. It points to the lack of English-language courses in the city and a lack of international educational ambition.

‘This means the city is missing out on talent, thousands of jobs and millions of euros in income,’ spokesman Frank Uffen said.

The lack of affordable accommodation for international students is another contributing factor, he said. Uffen is also a director at the Student Hotel group.