Euro 2024 has begun with a bang, and how! The 17th edition of Europe’s flagship international men’s soccer tournament is being hosted on German soil for the third time, earlier, West Germany hosted it an 8-team edition in 1988 and four matches of the multi-national Euro 2020 which were played in Munich
Euro 2024 is seen as a strong boost to the already struggling German GDP growth which is expected to grow by around 0.3%. In this series, we will discuss about the business side of the tournament, its importance to UEFA and the economic impact for the host nation
Importance of Euro 2024 to UEFA
UEFA has budgeted €2.4bn in revenues to be generated by Euro 2024 which is almost 25% more than what was generated in Euro 2016 hosted in France. A comparison with Euro 2020, which generated €1.88mn revenue, would be not give the ideal picture since it was organised in the pandemic period which affected income substantially
What is important to note here is that UEFA is looking to fund much of its work and development grants, around €935 million for the next four years and top up its reserves around €70 million, through half of its Euro 2024 income, about €1.2 bn which is estimated to be the profit
Prize Money
Prize money for Euro 2024 will total €331 million, with the winners set to earn €8 million on top of a €9.25 million participation fee. The maximum the champions can earn, assuming they win all three of their group matches, is €28.25 million
Economic Impact
Simply put, economic impact is the net change in the German economy resulting hosting Euro 2024. According to the Ifo Institute for Economic Research forecast, Germany can expect about €1bn ($1.07 bn) boost to its economy thanks to foreign tourists travelling to the country for the Euro 2024
This would eventually correspond to about 0.1% of the country’s economic output in the second quarter of the year. Biggest beneficiaries in the boost are expected to be Germany´s hospitality and food retail sectors. The institute’s forecast further states more than 600,000 foreign tourists and 1.5 million additional overnight stays are expected during the championship
Interestingly, during the Germany-hosted 2006 World Cup, beer sales rose around 5% before and during the tournament. If that trend continues, that would be especially welcome as 2023 was a difficult year for the beer industry, with sales in the country falling by 4.5% to 8.4 billion litres, continuing a long-term downtrend, according to government data
Conclusion
In all the above-mentioned aspects, it is seen that Euro 2024 is a much-awaited event for both UEFA and the host country, who stand to gain immensely. Of course, it doesn’t need to be said about the excitement the high-energy matches will generate. Fans are sure to be in for a treat!
A promise of a win-win situation for all stakeholders involved seems to be unfolding!
