Japan will pay dearly for the postponement of the Olympic Games in 2021, probably next summer. Katsuhiro Miyamoto, a professor of sports economics at Kansai University, said the move could cost the host country up to $ 5.8 billion (or 5.35 billion euros). Compared to the overall cost of the Olympic Games, around 1.350 billion yen (or 11.5 billion euros, not counting the very high costs linked to moving the marathon and the marches to the north in Sapporo), the shock risk be heavy to collect for the organizers.
Economic recession could weigh heavily on publishing in 2021
The first sector affected includes the upkeep and maintenance of all the sports facilities in the Olympic village, as well as the preparation of the event in 2021 with a slate estimated, according to him, at 3.5 billion euros. But that's not all, Japan will also have to sit on all the scheduled cash inflows with the arrival of hundreds of thousands of tourists, sales of derivative products and much to gain from the service economy . Katsuhiro Miyamoto estimates this hole at just under two billion euros.
Mechanically, these expected revenues while the country's activity is already slowing down due to the pandemic, should logically fall into the coffers of the Japanese economy next year. Except that the global economic situation, very uncertain in the coming months, could have negative consequences on the number of visitors expected in 2021 while the tourism sector contributes 7.4% of Japanese GDP. If the economic and financial crisis follows, as it is feared, the health crisis, many travelers may decide to give up their Olympic getaway.
A jolt which will also have repercussions on the sports sector in France
The shock of the postponement of the Olympic Games will have economic consequences as far as France. Put on technical unemployment in France due to the coronavirus pandemic, the situation in the sports sector could also see its situation weakened at a time when public support is decreasing in this sector. “The International Olympic Committee (IOC) donates a large part of its profits through various solidarity programs. However, if we shift by one year, we may shift by one year the funding of new programs. Solidarity can be threatened. And it will be even worse if there are cancellations of other sporting events ” , worries Christophe Lepetit, responsible for economic studies at the Center for Law and Economics of Sport (CDES) in Limoges.
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