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From budget to blowout: how Paris 2024 got so expensive

The French Court of Auditors revealed in its latest report that organizing the Summer Olympics in Paris cost taxpayers nearly 6 billion euros. That’s a lot more than the 1 billion euros the government had originally promised as the maximum public contribution.

Interestingly, back in 2023, independent experts from the Institute of Sports Economics (IES) had already warned that the real cost could go over 7 billion euros. But their report was ignored by the authorities.

Where did all that money go?

The report shows that the spending breaks down into two main parts. Around 2.77 billion euros went to actually organizing the Games — things like logistics, promotion, and coordinating events. Another 3.19 billion euros was spent on infrastructure: building new sports venues and improving transport.

One of the most expensive projects was extending a metro line to make it easier to reach the Olympic venues. That alone cost an extra 214 million euros, but it will continue to benefit the city long after the Games.

Security was also a huge expense. France needed 35,000 police officers and gendarmes o

  n duty every day, and in the end that cost 665 million euros. The high spending was down to the need to protect many different sites, as well as the risk of terrorist attacks and protests.

Was it worth it?

Tony Estanguet, head of the organizing committee, disagreed with the Court’s calculations. He argued that the actual cost to taxpayers was under 2 billion euros and that the investments will bring major benefits — like more tourism and better infrastructure.

Prime Minister François Bayrou made a similar point, saying the auditors focused only on the spending and didn’t take into account the long-term gains for the economy.

Even before the Games, unions had organized strikes over so-called “Olympic inflation,” with economists saying that housing prices in Paris rose by 23%. The protests grew louder when it was revealed that 45% of contracts went to companies linked to politicians.

Paris Olimpics/ Photo: Unsplash [@Qi Li]

Paris Subway/ Photo: Unsplash [@Louis Paulin]

Will Paris 2024 pay off?

Before the Games, the Court of Auditors had estimated the total cost would be between 3 and 5 billion euros. In the end, it turned out higher. Organizers say most of the funding came from commercial sources, but it was public money that made the event possible.

Now the big question is whether these investments will really bring clear benefits — or whether, like with many previous Olympics, they’ll end up as a burden on the budget.

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