The Paris 2024 Board of Directors met on Thursday at the Maison du sport français, the headquarters of the French National Olympic and Sports Committee (CNOSF). Paris 2024 and its stakeholders adopted the final budget for the project, showing a surplus of at least EUR 26.8 million. The Board of Directors also presented the environmental and climate report for the Games of Paris 2024 which displayed that the commitment to halve the carbon footprint of the Games has been met.

A press statement issued by the Organising Committee of Paris 2024, says that the Paris 2024 Board of Directors adopted the Organising Committee’s final multi-year budget following the fifth and final budget review. Following the popular, operational and sporting success of the Olympic and Paralympic Games, Paris 2024 will generate a surplus budget of at least EUR 26.8 million, with revenue of EUR 4,480.7 million and expenditure of EUR 4,453.9 million.

The statement adds that the financial trajectory adopted was established on a deliberately cautious and conservative basis, based on certain revenues and all possible expenses, even if they have not yet been incurred. Paris 2024’s final budget therefore includes a protective provision set up to cover the final residual risks and potential contingencies. All or part of this provision may be released when the Organising Committee is wound up and may be added to the surplus presented to date.

The organisers say that with 12.1 million tickets sold, Paris 2024 registered record ticketing and hospitality revenues, demonstrating the success of the Games. With projected sales of EUR 1,489 million, Paris 2024 exceeded its ticketing and hospitality revenue target set at the time of the bid by EUR 348 million. The target for domestic partnerships, the highest ever for the organisation of an event in France, was also exceeded by EUR 150 million, reaching a total of EUR 1,238 million.

This sharp rise in additional revenue, 18 pc more than on the forecast budget defined at the time of the bid, mainly from private sources, enabled the Organising Committee to cover all the additional expenditure incurred.

The statement adds that with an increase of 17 pc in expenditure compared to the forecast budget defined at the time of the bid, Paris 2024 has seen the least cost overrun recorded by an Organising Committee for the Games in the modern era between the bid and the delivery of the Games. The organisers say that at least half of this additional expenditure is linked to the global inflation shock that occurred at the beginning of 2022, at a key moment for the Organising Committee when it still had almost 90 pc of its budget to spend.

The other half of the additional expenditure is attributable to an extension of the scope of the project. On the one hand, the Organising Committee was obliged to incur additional expenditure, for example to reinforce the security arrangements for which the organiser was responsible in view of the changing security context and the increased threats. Compared with the resources allocated in the bid, an additional EUR 100 million was committed, which is 10 times more resources than were allocated in London 2012. At the same time, the additional expenditure incurred by Paris 2024 was a winning investment for the project.

The organisers say that the additional expenditure incurred by Paris 2024 strengthened the vision, influence and appeal of the project. The decision to hold the opening ceremonies in the city raised the profile of France and Paris around the world like never before. These ceremonies enabled the last Premium Partner of Paris 2024 to be signed up, and increased enthusiasm for the Games. For example, the day after the Olympic Games Opening Ceremony, Olympic ticket sales jumped by 26 pc and Paralympic ticket sales by 83 pc.

The addition of four new sports, including three new urban sports, to renew, diversify and rejuvenate the Games’ audience, contributed to the success of ticket sales and the mobilisation of partners. Investments in innovative public engagement projects such as the Club Paris 2024, the supporters’ squares, the Parc des Champions, the Terre de Jeux label and the Mass Event Running helped to make the Games a popular success.

Paris 2024 had also made commitments to the host country in terms of legacy and social and societal responsibility, a legacy programme whose cost almost tripled compared to the bid budget, expenditure to meet the commitment to deliver more environmentally and climate-responsible Games; and the largest cultural programme ever put in place during the Games to bring together sport and culture.

In total, public subsidies, valued at EUR 204.1 million, accounted for less than 5 pc of the Organising Committee’s total budget and were entirely earmarked for funding the Paralympic Games to promote Paralympic athletes and a change in the way disability is viewed in France. Public funding represents less than one-third of the cost of the Paralympic Games, compared with 50 pc in previous editions.

In view of its good budgetary results, Paris 2024 will not be calling on the various sources of financing, totalling EUR 43 million, that the public stakeholders had guaranteed it in case of need.

The Board of Directors also presented the environmental and climate report for the Olympic and Paralympic Games Paris 2024 which says that the flagship commitment to halve the carbon footprint of the Games has been met, with Paris 2024’s carbon footprint showing a 54.6 pc reduction in carbon emissions compared to the average for the London 2012 and Rio 2016 editions, adding that Tokyo 2020 is not taken into account because the edition was held without international spectators.

With its concept of Games in the city and its temporary facilities at the foot of the most beautiful monuments, Paris 2024 proposed a delivery model that was more circular and more respectful of the environment. Never before has an Organising Committee paid so much attention to the second life of the equipment and resources used for the Games, with the vast majority of equipment rented out, donations made to associations and the French sports movement, the success of the Games’ auction sales and the second life platform for professionals.

The objectives of reducing waste and the quantity of single-use plastic used in catering, as well as protecting biodiversity have also been achieved.

While the major results of the actions to make the Games more economically and socially responsible were already detailed at the Board of Directors meeting in October 2024, the publication of the Sustainability and Legacy report is also an opportunity to complete this assessment with the achievements in terms of social inclusion. In total, between March and September 2024, Paris 2024 counted more than 1.5 million hours of social integration work carried out on its contracts for more than 6,700 beneficiaries, nine job forums organised and 181,000 jobs created as part of the Games.