Taming the white elephant: How smart cities leverage mega events for advancing digital technologies

Mega-events have long been associated with urban transformation, yet concerns over their long-term impact persist, particularly regarding underutilized infrastructure, often referred to as “white elephants”. While smart cities integrate technology, governance, and urban planning to enhance efficiency and sustainability, the extent to which mega-events contribute to digital advancement remains underexplored. This study investigates the relationship between mega-events and smart city digitalization, focusing on three key dimensions: digital services, digital infrastructures, and digital communication. Using a longitudinal dataset (2012–2023) of 11 European cities that hosted the UEFA Champions League Final, we employ fixed-effects panel regressions to assess whether these events act as catalysts for urban digitalization. Our findings suggest that while mega-events significantly enhance digital infrastructures and communication technologies, their impact on digital services remains limited, likely due to governance and institutional constraints. This research contributes to the literature on smart cities and mega-events while also offering practical implications for policymakers, urban planners, and international federations, emphasizing the need for strategic governance, co-creation mechanisms and collaborative partnerships to maximize the digital impact of mega-events and prevent technological investments from becoming digital white elephants.