Eleven million euros. This is the amount paid annually to the Web Summit for hosting an event in Portugal. If we consider that the event will actually remain in the Portuguese capital until 2028, its cost will be a total of 110 million euros in compensation taken by the state and the city council of Lisbon through the Lisbon Tourism Development Fund and the Ministry of Economy. …

But let’s get down to the numbers: in the four days of the 2021 exhibition, more than 59,000 purchases were made on site with an average consumption of € 10.33.

According to SIBS, maps of 100 different nationalities were used in the spaces of the technology summit. A total of 73.7% of consumption was produced by foreigners and 26.3% by Portuguese. Among the consumption by foreigners, the United Kingdom (10.5%) receives the most attention, followed by Germany (7.4%), Brazil (4.8%), Ukraine (4.4%) and Poland (3.7%).

In terms of purchases and withdrawals in the Lisbon area, the number of transactions increased by 4.2% compared to the 2019 edition.As for transactions exclusively with foreigners, there was also an increase of 18.6%. At 13:51 (Lisbon time) on November 2, the second day of the summit, deals peaked.

By sector of activity, supermarkets (31.3%) rank first in the list with the largest number of confirmed purchases, followed by the restaurant and similar sector (23.3%), gas stations (5%), as well as fashion and accessories (4.1 %). %).

In terms of the length of stay in Lisbon for foreigners attending the Web Summit 2021, most of them chose to stay only on the days of the event (65.8%), while 34.2% had been in Lisbon from the previous weekend.

42,751 people from 128 countries visited this publication with a return to face-to-face format. The total, however, was lower than registered in the last face-to-face edition in 2019, when 70,469 people took part.

Until we see, it is not known for sure what economic impact the summit will have on the country, however, according to Economy Minister Pedro Siza Vieira, the immediate result is “very positive” and fully justifies the national effort, but less than expected.

The statements were made by a government official after a new assessment by the Economy Ministry’s Research and Strategy Office was released Wednesday, which reduced the short-term financial impact of the event. According to this new analysis by researchers from Minho University, whose direct impact survey covers 2016, 2017, 2018 and 2019, i.e. four face-to-face meetings before the pandemic, the numbers lag behind what was estimated in the first estimate published in 2018. One of the explanations for this drop is the reduction in the participants’ forecasts made three years ago.

It was originally expected that the rate of visitor growth would increase from year to year, indicating an average influx of around 80,000, which has never happened. In 2019, the turnout was ten thousand people below the forecast. The estimated turnout for 2018 and the actual number also showed a difference of about 11,000 visitors.

Thus, with fewer visitors, the immediate financial return is also lower than originally expected. In case of aggravation, revision towards lowering the average cost estimate. The estimated cost is now € 1.98 per day lower than originally indicated.

The results of this latest survey also show a downward correction in employment and tax revenue collected by the government. In 2019, the equivalent annual employment was 1,692 jobs, not 2,911 as calculated in the first study. And income tax income was 14.7 million, not 35.8 million.

There is a difference of 71.7 million euros between the increase in produced wealth estimated at 141.5 million euros in 2019 and 69.8 million now calculated for this year on the basis of revised figures, which is equivalent to a decrease of about 50%.

Despite the downward revision, an immediate return to the Portuguese economy remains well above the aforementioned € 11 million.

“This study shows that the direct impact of the Web Summit, whether in terms of employment or tax revenues and the volume of induced demand in the economy, is highly positive in all respects, showing that the direct return more than justifies the investment we make.” – insisted Siza Vieira, pointing out that there are “indirect impacts” that are “difficult to measure”, but which, according to the minister, must be taken into account, since “everyone knows about the cases of visitors who come and invest [no país] after a better perception of the country. “

According to a study by the European University, the Portuguese recognize and support the impact of the Lisbon Web Summit. According to the study “The Impact of the Web Summit on the Economy and Tourism of Lisbon,” 93% believe that the recognition, international image (89%) and reputation (84%) of the Portuguese capital are growing.

The majority of respondents also reported that they trust the decisions made by the government in the field of tourism regarding the development of activities (71%) and the efforts to include the tourism industry in the planning of tourism activities (62%).

In addition, more than half of survey participants (54%) said they agreed with the statement “The Web Summit strengthens the cohesion of the Lisbon tourism industry”.

This study was conducted from 17 to 25 October 2021 with 322 participants.