Pope Copacabana mass
The crowds packed the Copacabana for the Papal mass before heading off to sample Rio's evening entertainment

Any event that draws the crowds is likely to prove a licence to print money for local traders, and a Papal visit is no exception.

So with an estimated three million people packing out Rio de Janeiro's famous Copacabana beach to hear Pope Francis deliver mass last Sunday, it should come as no surprise to learn that the city's traders received a welcome boost. Indeed, it was something the organisers of World Youth Day were anticipating, having estimated that the event would provide an injection of $220 million for the local economy.

However, while they were almost certainly referring to hotels, cafes, restaurants, and purveyors of knock-off religious tat, it is unlikely they were referring to another section of Rio's economy: gay strip clubs.

But we live in a world that runs on supply and demand, and it seems that such venues were what the crowds were demanding at Catholic World Youth Day 2013. "At the spectacular and decadent Le Boy club in Copacabana," reports Gay Star News, "attendance was apparently up 30%. The gay club is famous for its sexy male strip shows and Le Boy even has its own gay sauna." There was also increased demand for same-sex trysts, as "gay dating apps including Grindr reportedly saw huge numbers of men messaging each other to organize hook-ups".

So, an economic boost, but perhaps not in the form the Church would have wanted. But then again, with the Pope offering some conciliatory words for gay Catholics on the flight back from Brazil, maybe the man at the top wouldn't actually mind that much?