A different perspective on the World Cup 2022

From keeping our eyes peeled during nerve-wracking penalties to idolizing our beloved star players, we tend to drift away from reality. A reality that a World Cup has so much economic impact undergoing, while a match goes on. We have tourists coming from all over the world, making millions of transactions. On the other hand, we have brands and corporations splurging on advertisements that are viewed by almost half the world. These are just some of the many economic impacts.

It may seem that a World Cup is glorified, with a huge stadium and countless sponsors. However, we often fail to see the negative implications of a World Cup. It is due to its glorification and the potential economic spillovers, that attract countries to host it, even when they are financially unstable. Hosting a World Cup incurs an extraordinarily large sunk cost, especially when a country has no required infrastructure to support it. For instance, the 2014 World Cup cost Brazil 11.6 billion USD as new roads, hotels and a stadium were built. It has also been estimated that Qatar spent around 229 billion USD.

You may think that such a hefty investment would require relatively high profits. However, revenue from match tickets is not gained by Qatar. FIFA stands to gain from match tickets instead. The aforementioned marketing efforts and advertisements are also pocketed by FIFA. What Qatar stands to gain would then be the spillovers on the tourism industry, such as hotels and other related goods and services. This may then seem like a poor investment. Furthermore, the infrastructures developed may turn into "white elephant" structures after the World Cup. The billion-dollar stadiums often become under-utilised and abandoned.

Host countries which are not well-to-do to begin with, may accentuate underlying socio-political issues as well. As heavy developments in infrastructure are required, many migrant workers or workers tend to be exploited in the process. Take the instance of Qatar, with migrant workers taking up 90 per cent of its total workforce for the construction of World Cup infrastructures. These workers are often underpaid and some have even died due to the lack of safety measures during construction. Reports by The Guardian revealed the deaths of at least 6,500 migrant workers due to the World Cup developments.

In sum, is having a World Cup actually worth it? Can we do something about its sustainability or are we too invested in our favourite players and sport?