Russia’s Record-Breaking $15 Billion World Cup Price Tag: What Does It Buy?

The FIFA World Cup in Russia is the most expensive ever, with an official price tag of $15 billion. Close to $3 billion has been spent on 12 new or upgraded stadiums, and at least another $8 billion on infrastructure, including new roads, railroads and airports. Is that a good return for the Russian taxpayer? Professor Leonid Grigoryev, an economist at the Analytical Center for the Government of the Russian Federation, offers an unusual analogy. “The discussion of the efficiency of...

© La Voix de l'Amérique - mardi 19 juin 2018