Trends in the Expected Economic Return from the Olympics: a Guide to the Future of the Games

Advocates for the use of public funds to finance the Olympic Games emphasize the need to treat such an allocation of monies as an investment rather than an expenditure in estimating the economic impact. Technically, advocates assert that the economic return from the Olympic Games exceeds zero, meaning no better use of public funds exists. Financial evidence counters such claims and, in fact, supports accounting losses from the Olympic Games. Growing recognition of a negative economic return explains developments relating to waning interest in hosting the Games and the International Olympic Committee's decision to revamp the bidding process for awarding the Games and to award the Summer Games through 2032 to developed countries with substantial sports infrastructure.