The official cost of the postponed Tokyo Olympics is now $15.4 billion, a 22% increase from last year’s budget of $12.6 billion.
The $2.8 billion difference stems from costs of the one-year delay like renegotiating contracts and implementing COVID-19 safety measures. Costs specifically related to combating the virus total $900 million.
Audits by the Japanese government, however, have suggested that the actual cost of the games will be closer to $30 billion.
- When Tokyo won the bid for the event in 2013, it said it would cost $7.5 billion.
- The Japanese government and taxpayers are responsible for all but $6.7 billion of the cost, an increasingly hard sell to the public as anti-Olympics sentiment grows.
About 70 domestic sponsors have already contributed a record $3.3 billion, and other companies will reportedly tack on $150 million more.
In October, Tokyo organizers announced that they would shave $280 million off the budget by cutting back on some frills like hospitality offerings.
