No African city has ever hosted an Olympic Games. While some believe Cape Town has what it takes to host this mega event, the city refuses to confirm any Olympic aspirations.
Cape Town last bid to host the 2004 games and lost to Athens. Following the Paris Olympics, Egypt announced its intention to host either the 2036 or 2040 Olympics. According to Reuters, Mustapha Berraf, Head of the Association of National Olympic Committees of Africa, said Cape Town could also be considering candidacy but did not provide details.
Think Tank Cape Town 2040, which is exploring Cape Town’s potential to host the 2040 Summer Olympic Games, claims the city already has much of the required key sporting infrastructure.
The group’s study found that 84-85% of required venues either currently exist or could be temporary sites – mostly in Cape Town’s metro area, Stellenbosch and Paarl.
Areas in need of development include substantial swimming pool upgrades to meet World Aquatics standards, athletics stadiums and enhanced multi-sport event hosting experience in the greater Western Cape.
Architect and urban designer Guy Briggs, among the people behind the 2040 bid, said: “Bringing an Olympic Games to Cape Town could help catalyse and speed up the city’s spatial restructuring and regeneration, especially if we make the best use of our existing sports and other assets. No African city has hosted the Games – let's make Cape Town the first!”
Responding to questions about Olympics plans, the city’s media office said “the City of Cape Town is not in a position to confirm an Olympics bid at this stage”.
Economic and tourism impact
The economic and tourism impact of hosting the Olympic Games could be significant. However, several experts and studies indicate this should be weighed up against the enormous cost.
As part of the Paris bid, an economic impact study by the French Centre for Sports Law and Economics in 2016 found, of the estimated €10,7 billion impact of the 2024 games, about €1.4-3.5 billion would be tourism-related.
However, the Air France-KLM Group found, ahead of the start of the games, traffic to and from the French capital lagged behind other major European cities.
“International markets show significant avoidance of Paris. Travel between the city and other destinations is also below the usual June-August average as residents in France seem to be postponing their holidays until after the Olympic Games or considering alternative plans.”
According to the Olympics organisers, Rio de Janeiro, which hosted the 2016 games, achieved “record tourism figures”. This translated into a 4,8% increase in foreign tourist arrivals that year and a 6,2% increase in tourism revenue.
However, research shows that no city has ever been able to host the games under budget. Rio de Janeiro’s games ran 352% over budget and Paris is estimated to be over by 115%.
