Mega sporting events and sustainability: “Moving the Goal Posts” conference report

Deutsche Gesellschaft für Internationale Zusammenarbeit (GIZ) GmbH (Published September 2014)

Sporting events like the World Cup, as well as the Olympic and Paralympic Games, generate excitement around the world. In addition to having appeal as competitions, they usually attract interest in the countries and people taking part. They also draw vast amounts of investment to the host countries in order to meet the comprehensive demands of governing bodies such as the Fédération Internationale de Football Asso ciation (FIFA), International Olympic Committee (IOC) and International Paralympic Committee (IPC). Stadiums are built, airports modernised and roads resurfaced. With the whole world watching, host nations have the chance to present a positive image of themselves to an international audience. A huge opportunity then?

Not everyone thinks so, as was made clear by the protests in the context of mega sporting events worldwide. Critics claim that the billions invested in infrastructure projects are sorely needed in other areas, such as the education system. Consequently, developing countries and emerging economies in particular are quickly faced with the question of whether these investments are truly worthwhile in the end. There is also the question of what needs to be done to ensure that mega sporting events leave a legacy that benefits all population groups in the host country, and how this can be achieved in such a short space of time?

How can the population benefit from the vast amounts of investment?
How can social, economic and environmental sustainability feed into the planning and implementation of major sporting events from the outset?
What are realistic economic goals and how can they be achieved?
How can an appropriate level of civic involvement be achieved, and how does this fit in with the communications goals of the government in question?

These were the questions tackled by guests at the “Moving the Goal Posts – Mega Sporting Events and Sustainability” conference, which the Deutsche Gesellschaft für Internationale Zusammenarbeit (GIZ) GmbH hosted jointly with the GoetheInstitut Salvador da Bahía, on behalf of the German Federal Ministry for Economic Cooperation and Development (BMZ) in the Brazilian city of Salvador da Bahía, on 15 June 2014.

This publication provides an overview of the conference’s key propositions.

Key Links