Opinion: You Don’t Need a Visa to Go to Paris Olympics, Unless You Actually Want to Eat Something
PARIS—The Paris Olympics have been a joy to watch. On television, I mean—actually going to Paris 2024, it turns out after a couple of days in the French capital, is a bizarrely frustrating experience seemingly designed to annoy spectators as much as possible.
Take, for example, the experience of paying for stuff. Visa, a global Olympic sponsor, is the only type of payment card accepted at Olympic venues. That means if you want to buy something to eat or drink while you’re watching an event but you’ve only got a Mastercard or American Express with you, you’ll need to either have cash or buy a Visa prepaid card sold at kiosks around the venues.
If you missed that irritating experience this summer, don’t worry: Visa reassures us it will be “the only card accepted at the Olympic and Paralympic Games through 2032.”