Since New York announced the details of its $2.69 billion bid for the 2012 Olympics, several observers have noted factors that indicate the city’s underdog status.

Brian Hatch, an Olympics watcher and host of the Web site NewYorkGames.org, said while the city meets the requirements for a large supply of hotel rooms and an efficient transportation system, its proposal to make a significant financial investment could pose a serious obstacle.

After taking office in 2001, the president of the International Olympic Committee, Jacques Rogge, made a priority of reducing the cost and complexity of the games. He said in an interview that he didn’t want to favor rich cities, thereby pricing out much of the world. This concern has helped prevent the awarding of games to any cities in Africa or South America, Mr. Hatch said.

“The proposed stadium for the Olympics may be New York’s fatal flaw,” Mr. Hatch said. “Paris is building several arenas at only a fraction of the cost.”

A former deputy mayor of Salt Lake City, Mr. Hatch, also said Madrid may be the sentimental favorite of the IOC since it is only renovating a stadium the size of Shea Stadium and has never hosted the games. In contrast, the 1980 winter games were held in upstate New York at Lake Placid.

In London, bookies have placed 12-to-1 odds that New York City will win the bid. Paris is favored over London, Madrid, and Moscow, said a sports consultant, Marc Ganis. He said this makes sense given that Paris has facilities in place from the 1998 World Cup and would not have applied for a third time had it not been given some implicit understanding from the IOC, he said.

“The IOC is traditionally very Eurocentric and that definitely works against New York City,” Mr. Ganis said.

A spokesman for the city’s bid committee, Lazaro Benitez, is optimistic about the city’s plan, which includes renovations of many venues and the construction of an 86,000-seat stadium. Mr. Lazaro dismissed the suggestion about the IOC being Eurocentric, noting that Paris lost its bid to Beijing in 2008 and Salzburg, Austria, lost the 2010 Olympics to Vancouver, Canada. He also disagreed that the cost of the city’s bid would work against it, since the IOC is mostly concerned that facilities do not become unused after the games have passed. “They prefer that no venue ever turn into a white elephant, and we’ve ensured ours will not,” Mr. Benitez said, citing examples such as the shooting center at Rodman’s Neck in the Bronx, which will become a shooting range for the NYPD, and the water polo venue in Flushing Meadows, Queens, which will be open to the public.

Mr. Benitez added that even though some observers describe the city as an underdog, it is important to note that favorites in seven of the last nine races did not win. The IOC will examine proposed sites in February and March and announce its decision in July.