PARIS: A study commissioned by the French government revealed that Euro 2016 made an economic impact of more than € 1 billion on French economy.
With organizational expenditure, from officials to participating teams, totaling €596 million and the impact of the 613,000 foreign visitors estimated at €625.8m, some €1.22bn flowed through the French economy as a result of the tournament.
The study, carried out by the respected Centre for Sports Law and Economy in Limoges (CDES) and the Keneo agency, reckoned foreign visitors spent an average of €154 a day over the 7.9 days they stayed in France.
Thirty-five percent of that sum was spent on accommodation, 30 percent on food, 15 percent on transport and 20 percent on purchases and visits. The study did not take into account French visitors.
In terms of employment, the study calculated a “volume of activity” at 116,750 months worked as a consequence of the tournament, the equivalent of 9,762 full-time positions in 2016.
The 96-page document, which was presented on Tuesday by Minister for Sports Patrick Kanner and the Secretary for Sports Thierry Braillard, found the European Championship earned the French state some €75m, of which €70m was VAT.
Kanner stated the sum was approximately what UEFA would have paid on their €830m profit from the tournament had they not been controversially exempted from taxation in 2014. He added European football’s governing body had also injected revenue in other areas.
Kanner told that UEFA didn’t pay tax, but it did pay € 20 million to rent the stadiums, € 20 million to the cities to finance ‘heritage’ projects, and € 5 million for the fan zones, so we can say that it was a good operation economically.
