Sporting events

[Furball808]

If you’re unaware, SEA Games or Southeast Asian Games are happening right now and Thailand is hosting it. It’s a sporting event where countries in the region participate. A regional Olympics event basically. It got me thinking how hosting such an event can help the economy, From what I know countries even hold bidding and they really wish to host the event in their countries.

Why is that? First of all preparing for the event will stimulate job creation. Construction, hospitality, services, and etc. During the event many will visit the country giving them the opportunity to advertise their country and culture. Sporting events are a Tourism boost. And if planned well, the country will be most likely visited by more people.

[abhiseshakana]

It's true that hosting sporting events creates jobs, boosts tourism, and provides international exposure. However, it's important to question whether these impacts outweigh the costs ? Ultimately, what's expected is not economic activity, but economic value.

Most of the jobs created are temporary, low-wage, and end soon after the event, while infrastructure costs, such as stadiums, transportation, and security, are permanent and publicly funded. If these facilities lack a clear post event use, the economic benefits quickly evaporate, while maintenance costs continue.

Regarding tourism, not all visits are net gains. When countries host international sporting events, there's a crowding-out effect where regular tourists avoid the host country due to rising prices, high crowding, and logistical disruptions. This means that increased visits during the event don't necessarily significantly increase total annual visits.

Countries' reasons for competing to host are often not solely economic, but also non-economic factors such as political prestige, domestic legitimacy, nation branding, and elite interests. From a fiscal perspective, regional events like the SEA Games rarely generate net profits unless they leverage existing infrastructure/assets, tightly control costs, create a legacy plan, and shift as much of the costs to the private sector as possible without compromising the public interest, and have a concrete long term utilization plan.