The Legacy of Great Sports Events in Italy. Historical-political Excursus and Sociological Considerations, in Mega Events Footprints. Past, Present and Future

This study intends to analyse the causes, in the recent years, for the dramatic and continuous drop of bids to host the Olympics by countries in which the strong public opinion does not take kindly to the event. The article presents some of the reasons for that decline by observing some historical, political and social elements in Italy which give evidence to the remarkable raise of the sport professionalism and event spectacularization which turn the Games into a high cost event.