Sports Mega-Events and Economic Growth: A Synthetic Control Approach

Abstract

This paper contributes to the current literature investigating whether hosting sports mega-events brings tangible economic benefits to the host country. Specifically, we examine whether staging the Olympic Games and the FIFA World Cups leads to observable economic growth. The research has been conducted through a quasi-experimental study in the spirit of the difference-in-differences method. The research subject includes states in which the Olympic Games and FIFA World Cup were held between 2010 and 2016: Canada, South Africa, Great Britain, and Brazil. We found that there is no significant effect of hosting sports mega-events on economic growth.