South Africa Sees Small Return on World Cup Expenditures

The South African government is reporting a $500 million return on the $4.6 billion it spent to host the 2010 World Cup.

Marthinus van Schalkwyk, South Africa's tourism minister, said just 309,000 foreign fans attended the tournament, compared to predictions of 450,000.

South African-based companies also failed to reap the benefits of the tournament, according to a study by KPMG. Just 22pc of KPMG's 100 biggest African clients, including several multinationals, said they had benefited from the World Cup, compared to 45pc predicting a boost last year.

South Africa recoups just a tenth of the £3bn cost of staging World Cup 2010
The Telegraph
December 10, 2010