The purpose of this research project was to explore the negative impacts of hosting a mega-event. The paper specifically addresses the FIFA Men’s World Cup Final Tournament: Korea Japan 2002 and France 1998. The argument is made that improper planning methods and overestimating of benefits has had negative impacts on recent hosts. The methodology used is comparative case study analysis by conducting an extensive review of existing literature and event-related documents. The findings are constructed to present a narrative of the experiences of France and Korea Japan. The analysis highlights the distinct challenges and successes of these host regions. The 1998 World Cup in France was plagued with fan violence, causing not only injury to citizens and vandalism but also the displacement of citizens using local services. The 2002 World Cup in Korea Japan was the most expensive FIFA tournament to date, placing a large financial burden on the taxpayers of Korea and Japan without the realization of stated benefits by event organizers. Drawing on these experiences, two recommendations are made in encourage sustainability efforts. First, further empirically based research of the long-term social and environmental impacts to determine if stated event legacies are achieved. Second, the addition of social impact assessment to monitoring practices, which will better identify the affects of the event and the changing urban environment on the host region. The essay concludes that transparency and accountability resulting from critical questioning of independent organizations will be key to the sustainability of mega events. Assessment of harmful social and financial impacts on citizens caused by the hosting of a mega-event and related policy decisions.