Switzerland has unveiled its decentralised plan to host both the 2038 Winter Olympic and Paralympic Games, granted special conditions from the International Olympic Committee (IOC) to do so.
Switzerland has revealed the locations which could host the 2038 Winter Olympic and Paralympic Games if its bid is successful.
The Switzerland 2038 Association announced on January 12 during a press conference in Bern that the two sporting events will be spread across Geneva, Lausanne, Crans-Montana, Engelberg, Zurich, Zug, Lugano, Lenzerheide and St. Moritz.
Lausanne is currently being considered to host the opening ceremony of the 2038 Winter Olympic and Paralympic Games, with Bern expected to host the closing ceremony. St. Mortiz has been selected to host bobsleigh and skeleton events, while Crans-Montana will host alpine skiing.
The other regions not named during the press conference have demonstrated support to the Association to host sporting events which have “existing first-class sports facilities”.
Switzerland’s bid is also the first to be held across the entirety of the country in a decentralised model for both the Winter Olympics and Paralympics. Both sporting events have been traditionally held in a single city and/or state.
The Winter Olympics compromises 16 sports in total, with more than 100 disciplines and medals available. This could be increased by 2038, as Ski Mountaineering (Skimo) has been introduced for the upcoming 2026 Milano Cortina Winter Olympics.
If selected, Switzerland will host its first Winter Olympics since 1948 when the competition was held in St. Mortiz, and the first time it has hosted the Paralympics. Switzerland is also the only country to have submitted their interest in hosting the Winter Olympics and Paralympics.
The International Olympic Committee (IOC) has granted ‘privileged dialogue’ discussions with the Swiss Olympic to formulate a three-year bid project. This is the first time the IOC has awarded this privilege to a bidding nation for one of its global sporting events.
The IOC is expected to announce the hosts of the Winter Olympics and Paralympics in either April or May 2027.
Can Switzerland pull it off?
Switzerland’s official olympic bid for the country to become the 2038 hosts was backed in September 2024 by the Federal Council, the Swiss government’s executive body.
The Federal Council announced a consultation process to begin this year to invite feedback from political parties, cantons and other relevant authorities on the project’s commitments, such as the decentralised plan, legal framework and monetary costs.
The country’s budget to fund the games is approximately $2.68bn (€2.3bn), with 82% coming from the private sector and 18% via public funding.
Upon the closing date for feedback to be retrieved from the consultation process, which a date has yet to be announced, comments will be discussed in Parliament before political figures can vote on passing the Winter Olympic and Paralympic bid in June 2026.
