#Qatar Sees $20 Billion Bump to Economy From Soccer World Cup - Bloomberg

Qatar Sees $20 Billion Bump to Economy From Soccer World Cup - Bloomberg

Tokyo’s 2020 Olympics may be a financial flop, but Qatar, host to one of the next big global sporting events since the start of the pandemic, expects its tournament late next year to provide an economic boost.

“We anticipate the contribution to the economy essentially would be around about $20 billion,” said Hassan Al Thawadi, Secretary-General of the Committee for Delivery and Legacy that’s building the infrastructure behind the 2022 World Cup. The sum is equivalent to about 11% of the country’s gross domestic product in 2019.

The analysis is the result of “a very high-level study,” he said, adding that more detailed projections won’t be known until after the event takes place in November and December of 2022. However, the construction and tourism industries are expected to be top beneficiaries, Al Thawadi said in an interview that will air in full during next week’s Qatar Economic Forum.

Qatar is trying to use the tournament to showcase its rapid expansion from a small pearl-diving enclave to Gulf metropolis and transit hub. Stadium construction accounts for a small fraction of the infrastructure spending that it’s undertaking ahead of the event; other projects include a metro system, an airport expansion, and the construction of a new city. Bloomberg Intelligence pegs the total value of all these building plans at $300 billion.

The Qatar Ministry of Commerce and Industry, Investment Promotion Agency Qatar and Media City Qatar are underwriters of the Qatar Economic Forum, Powered by Bloomberg.