Qatar has spent $220bn to build an entire city and its various infrastructure to host the Mondial World Cup.
The more realistic cost is estimated at a whopping $300bn by Bloomberg.
What Qatar Built for the Most Expensive World Cup Ever
Qatar has spent $300 billion preparing for the FIFA World Cup
Story by Simone Foxman and Adveith NairGraphics by Sam Dodge
This has nothing to do with innovation. But let me help with some random points of reference:
- $100bn - Promised Loss and Damage fund for helping developing countries fight climate change during the various COP (which never materialized)
- $52bn - Recent U.S. Chip and Science Act voted to reboot the national chipmaking industry
- $42bn - Annual French energy sector in 2019 (2% of the country's GDP)
- $26.25bn - Apple's R&D budget in 2022
- <$18bn - European Space Agency's budget for the next three years
- <$5bn- Moderna's cumulated R&D budget since 2016
- $1.14bn - Total cost of improving bike infrastructures in the Netherlands up to 2030
