The Olympic Games in Paris this year are expected to cost the state between €3 billion and €5 billion, France's national auditor said as new figures revealed the country's rising debt levels, AFP reports.
"We don't know yet how much the Olympics will cost," Pierre Moscovici, head of the audit body, told France Inter radio. "These games will cost between €3, €4 or €5 billion."
In January last year, Moscovici had estimated that the final cost to taxpayers would be "around €3 billion," an increase on the state budget's then estimate of €2.44 billion.
The bill for each Olympics is often expanded in the final stages of preparations as unbudgeted costs emerge or additional funds are needed to speed up unfinished construction work.
Under threat of strikes, the French government is currently negotiating one-off bonuses for public sector employees who will work during the Games, with up to €500 million expected to be paid to the police alone.
The total cost of the Paris Games, including private and public funds, was recently estimated at around €9 billion, up from the €6.6 billion projected when the city was chosen in 2017.
Comparing costs between Games is difficult due to the lack of transparency of figures and the complexity of comparing investments across countries.
But a 2020 study by Oxford University researchers concluded that all Summer Games since 1960 have come in over budget, with average sports-related spending proving to be between two and three times (172%) higher than the original estimate.
The most notorious cases of cost overruns were Montreal in 1976 and Rio de Janeiro in 2016, both of which left the cities nearly bankrupt and mired in debt, and Athens in 2004, which contributed to the country's debt and financial crisis.
Paris organizers had promised a "sober" Games, where existing sports infrastructure would be used for 95% of needs to reduce new construction and costs.
France's budget deficit soared to 5.5 % of gross domestic product last year, according to figures released on Tuesday, increasing pressure on President Emmanuel Macron's centrist government to find ways to cut spending and make savings.
France's public sector debt now stands at 110.6% of GDP, making the country the third most indebted country in the eurozone, surpassed only by laggards Greece and Italy. / BGNES
