The Real Costs and Benefits of Mega Sports Events

The pattern is the same the world over. A bid is announced for a major sporting event. Politicians and businessmen roll out figures and rationalisations as to why we’ll all benefit from investment of the public purse in the acquisition of said event.

If the bid should prove successful, then heaven and earth is moved to ensure things run smoothly, and great success proclaimed no matter what.

But every party has its costs, no matter how good it was. Are the benefits extolled real? And who benefits?

Wiley InterScience has made a critical analysis of the purported benefits of mega sports events, and finds much to contradict the usual claims.

http://www3.interscience.wiley.com/cgi-bin/fulltext/122420825/HTMLSTART

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