This was one of the major arguments of the promoters of the Olympic Games in France: certainly, their organization has a significant cost for public finances – more than four billion – but, in return, it makes a profit. First in terms of image, and on this point Paris 2024 was an undeniable success, but also in financial terms.
Three months after the end of the Paralympic Games, the Bank of France has just provided confirmation, in a “bulletin” published Tuesday. Holding the Games “had overall positive effects on the French economy during the summer of 2024, contrary to the fears that may have been expressed upstream”, assures the institution, which precisely measured the impact. : “GDP growth in the third quarter of the year was amplified by around a quarter of a point.” Before tempering: “However, this is a transitory impact on this quarter alone. »
Billets. A boom due to television rights and especially ticket sales. “With more than 12 million tickets sold, the Paris edition broke the attendance record in the history of the Games,” underlines the Bank of France. […] Ticket sales contribute to the observed 3.7% increase in the added value of household services in INSEE's quarterly accounts for the third quarter. This would represent 0.15 points of quarterly GDP growth. »
After months of fear, businesses have also benefited from the Olympics effect. In Ile-de-France, 12% of commercial services companies report a favorable impact. The same goes for tourism, with a 7% increase in non-resident visitors during the Olympic period compared to 2023. The Ile-de-France region welcomed nearly 40% of this surplus. On the other hand, notes the central bank, “the first information available on the period of the Paralympic Games does not indicate any net positive effect on international tourism”.
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