Do sports mega-events boost public funding in sports programs? The case of Brazil (2004–2015)

This article explores public expenditure in Brazilian sport from 2004 to 2015 and aims to understand if hosting sport mega-events has influenced investments in different types of sport (elite sport and educational/participation sport). Data were collected through governmental records and examined through descriptive statistics. Positive and negative variations of spending were reported, regarding both the overall budget allocated to sport and among the different types of sport. This study concluded that sport mega-events have influenced the funding of sports programs to some extent, but other aspects of public funding are likely to be more significant influencers on the observed variations. The study also argues that further research on different host countries is necessary to understand the impact of sport mega-events on public sport funding.