Most people have forgotten the meaning behind traditional or religious festivals

 
64 
January 1, 2020 
55.
 
Sporting events 
Some people think that it is a waste of money for countries to host big sporting 
events like the world cup, and that the money would be better spent on other things. 
However, others think that hosting large sporting events has a clear, positive impact 
on a country. 
There is fierce competition between nations to host major international sports events like 
the World Cup or Olympics as it is a unique opportunity to boost the national reputation of 
the host nation. In spite of its undeniable benefits, I believe that the costs are too great and 
therefore governments should prioritise other key issues to better benefit their citizens. 
On the one hand, becoming a host nation for global events such as the World Cup or the 
Olympics brings a number of economic and infrastructural benefits. During these events, 
there is an influx of tourists from all over the world who need places to stay, restaurants to 
eat in and traditional products to purchase. The efforts made to cater to these tourists will 
remain long after they have gone. The cost of renovating a hotel might pay for itself during 
the event and then begin turning a large profit in later years. The other main area of 
development is related to the rapid expansion of quality infrastructure. Nations will be 
forced to invest in new sports facilities like swimming pools and stadiums as well as make 
renovations to pre-existing infrastructure like roads and airports. For example, China used 
the Beijing Olympics as an opportunity to modernise old buildings and roads. 
On the other hand, these competitions use up tremendous resources from the host nation 
for a temporary competition. To ensure the success of these prestigious events, 
governments must waste a large percentage of the nation budget in the years leading up to 
the competition, oftentimes in the billions of dollars. The newly constructed facilities 
usually fall into disuse after each tournament. A salient example of this is Brazil as many of 
the swimming pools and sports facilities that were used in the 2014 Olympics are currently 
abandoned and becoming decrepit. Meanwhile, there are other pressing issues that have 
been festering including the need for new schools for underprivileged students and quality 
healthcare for the elderly population. If the government had prioritised these issues the 
country would be in a better position and its citizens would have a higher standard of 
living. 
To summarize, due to the exorbitant costs, I am of the belief that the government should 
not allocate such a large percentage of its financial resources to hosting global events with 
negligible long-term impact. Instead these events should be hosted in the same countries 
year after year so that the new infrastructure pays for itself over time. 

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