Was hosting the FIFA World Cup worth it for Vancouver?

And just like that, Vancouver’s FIFA World Cup hosting duties have come to an end. Now the question is: Was the hefty cost worth it?

Celebration in the streets characterized the seven FIFA World Cup matches hosted in Vancouver—a journey that wrapped up Tuesday.

“Absolutely it was a success,” said Ian Tostenson, the head of the B.C. Restaurant and Food Services Association.

Before the world’s biggest sporting event kicked off in the city, the cost of hosting it—estimated at $730 million—dominated the conversation. Now that it’s done, Tourism Minister Anne Kang said she feels excited by how the events went. She claims the province will pay off the bill through future visitors.

“I’m very confident that we will be able to find a very positive output in terms of revenue dollars,” said Kang Wednesday.

But economists say, not so fast. The community spirit and pride were undeniable, says Concordia University economics professor Moshe Lander, but paying off the expenses is unachievable.

He said avoiding the burdens of hosting should have been a “slam dunk” decision for elected officials.

“FIFA never should have been invited to Vancouver,” he said.

Destination Vancouver admits hotel occupancy was down in Vancouver this June compared to last summer, a decline it attributed to various factors, including expensive tickets, hotel prices and the fact that many conventions avoided the city in June.

“We’re sitting at about 75 per cent occupancy, whereas last year we were at about 91 per cent,” said Royce Chwin, president and CEO of Destination Vancouver.

And the much touted long-term tourism gains—pegged as high as $1 billion by the NDP government—are pure fantasy, says Lander.

“The Vancouver Olympics did not make money, and yet here we are, 15 years later, hosting a large-scale event that’s not going to make money,” he said.

But Chwin sides with the province, and maintains that the exposure generated by these games will lead to more visits down the road.

Tostenson adds that liquor sales were up by more than 2 per cent province-wide in the first week of the World Cup, and restaurants and pubs in the downtown core and various fan zones saw major spikes.

“We saw business increases in those areas like 50, 60 per cent,” said Tostenson.

In the afterglow of hosting the beautiful game, there’s a distinct sense it was worth it in terms of national and civic pride, but lots of dispute over whether it will pay off financially.