Putting a value on hosting a mega sporting event: symbolic value, economic and intangible effects

Mega sporting events are rich in symbolism that has made them attractive to cities and nations as a vehicle for signalling to a global audience a host’s openness to trade, tourism and investment, and as a catalyst for potentially transformational infrastructure programs and urban renewal. However, they have given rise to a symbolic economy with adverse features making hosting extremely costly, leading to increased political resistance in potential host regions. Proponents of hosting mega sporting events claim they will generate an economic boom, but much of the literature finds otherwise. This article critically reviews past studies which value either economic or intangible net benefits of mega sporting events, before developing an illustrative example to elicit how past methodological problems and misapplications can be overcome through a comprehensive cost-benefit analysis that accounts for all economic and intangible net benefits, properly treating all legacies arising from an event’s symbolic capital.