Eurovision 2018 nets €100 million for Lisbon

The economic impact of Portugal’s hosting of the Eurovision Song Contest 2018 has exceeded both Expo98 and Euro2004.

According to the Director-General of the Portuguese Hotel and Restaurant Association (AHRESP), José Esteves, “Neither Euro2004, nor the Web Summit or even Expo98 had this impact”.

The event, which has cost €20 million to host, has resulted in all of Lisbon’s hotels in the city-centre being completely fully booked, while revenues from hotels and restaurants alone should bag the city tens of millions of euros alone in just one week, not to mention the companies linked to staging, car rental, nighttime entertainment, tourism and others,” he said.

The head of AHRESP was in no doubt. “Neither Expo98, Euro2004 nor even Web Summit has had this level of economic and marketing impact for Portugal.”