Has any country ever gained a real net benefit from these sorts of games, like the Olympics? I think the whole point of them is to get some organizers brilliantly rich sucking on the 3-6 billion dollar teat while the taxpayers end up getting nothing for it except traffic jams.
Yes, while not a guarrentee many countries do well out of hosting events. There’s some funding as you say, plus large boosts to the local economy if a given city is able to support the huge influx of tourists. London 2012 for example was heralded as a huge success for the UK. Beyond any sense of ‘profit’, it’s also an investment in your own country. Former Olympic cities are generally left with great sports infrastructure (and transport), and it’s good for international relations, which is hard to put a monitary value on.
Oh, having trouble affording the cost of living are we…
