The 2010 FIFA World Cup was held in South Africa, necessitating the upgrade and construction of new stadiums across the country. Scenic though it is, Cape Town's Green Point stadium was both the most expensive to build, and will be the most expensive to manage, as well as hardest to book. Though Cape Town had two other stadiums that could have been upgraded, by account of City officials, FIFA strong-armed the City into building the Green Point stadium rather than using stadiums in poor, more dangerous and less scenic locales. Once the world cup was over and the haze of the party had worn off, the City found that the management company hired to book and run events and pay on-going operational and maintenance costs bailed out, leaving the City with a huge liability it couldn't afford and couldn't use because of its cost - what is known as a white elephant. Recent Olympics hosts have found themselves with the same problem - all hoping to recreate the "Barcelona Effect," they overspend their capital budgets only to find themselves with fond memories and a painful operational budget.
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