Accumulation by Dispossession through Sports Mega-Events: The case of Vila Autódromo and the creation of the Rio 2016 Olympic Park

Sammanfattning: The theoretical framework of accumulation by dispossession allows for a critical examination of urban development projects within neoliberalism (Harvey, 2009; Swyngedouw, Moulaert & Rodriguez, 2002). Within the same neoliberal paradigm, sports mega-events have come to play a significant role for urban regeneration and policy-making (Hall, 2006). Meanwhile attending to the well-documented cases of mass-evictions and reduction of standard housing rights as a recurrent consequence of cities hosting such events (Blunden, 2012), we believe that such a critical examination is arguably important in order to do justice to these kinds of urban regeneration projects. In this paper we analyse, by a case study approach, how mega-events amplify and accelerate the process of accumulation by dispossession. We attend to the development of the Olympic Park and Olympic Village, Barra da Tijuca, in preparation for the Rio 2016 Games, as well as the neighbouring community of Vila Autódromo. By analysing different types of source material, we discuss how the mechanisms of privatisation and entrepreneurialism are reflected in our case; understood as two important mechanisms that facilitate the process of accumulation by dispossession (Harvey, 2009).