Is Hosting the Olympics Too Costly?
In recent decades, most of the
cities that host the Olympics spent billions constructing venues for what is typically only temporary use, and then did not see a return on the investment even after accounting for tourism and other revenue the Olympics help to bring in.
The latest Olympic games in 2016 cost Brazil $15 billion (see more below).
Los Angeles is a significant exception to this norm. After the 1984 games it became one of the only host cities to earn back what it put in within a year.
This is part of why some advocate for LA hosting the Olympics permanently, as much of the infrastructure and arenas are already built.
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