The Ifo Institute for Economic Research predicted on Friday that the 2024 UEFA European Football Championship (Euro 2024) will pump around €1 billion ($1.07 billion) into Germany’s economy.
This economic boost is attributed to the influx of tourists visiting the country to attend the matches, which kick off today.
As Germany’s leading economic research institute, Ifo stated this injection amounts to approximately 0.1% of the country’s economic output in the second quarter of the year.
The hospitality and food retail sectors in Germany are expected to be the primary beneficiaries of the tournament.
However, Ifo researcher Jerome Wolff cautioned, “This effect is short-term.
Therefore, it is likely that service exports will decline as tourists leave after the conclusion of Euro 2024 in the third quarter, balancing out in the long run.”
Based on the institute’s calculations, which draw from data from the 2006 FIFA World Cup hosted by Germany, over 600,000 additional tourists are anticipated to visit the country.
During the tournament, hotels are expected to see an extra 1.5 million overnight stays.
The German Ministry of Economic Affairs also forecasts a temporary boost in sectors dealing with the public, following a weak retail performance this year.
However, it does not expect the surge to match the levels seen during the 2006 World Cup.
Experts agree that the overall impact of Euro 2024 on Germany’s economy, the largest in Europe, will also depend on the performance of the German national team in the tournament.
