DOSB hoping to get Germans on board with an Olympic bid
July 16, 2023
After several unsuccessful attempts, the German Olympic Sports Confederation (DOSB) thinks a new approach to trying to host the Olympic Games could work. Their idea? To drum up enthusiasm by getting the German public involved at an early stage of the process. Chancellor Olaf Scholz' government has already expressed its support for the undertaking. DW looks at the key questions and answers.
Which Olympic Games is the DOSB looking at?
The DOSB's initiative called "Deine Ideen, Deine Spiele" (Your ideas, your Games) is seeking to win public support for a dual bid for the 2036 and 2040 Summer Games or the 2038 and 2042 Winter Games. The 2036 Summer Games will mark the 100-year anniversary of the Summer Games hosted by the Nazi regime in Berlin. Germany also hosted the Winter Games in Garmisch-Partenkirchen earlier that same year.
The three Summer Games up to 2036 have already been awarded: in 2024 the Summer Games will be held in Paris, in 2028 in Los Angeles, and in 2032 in Brisbane. For the Winter Games, only the hosts for 2026 have been decided so far: Milan and Cortina d'Ampezzo. For 2030 and 2034, however, there is very strong competition in the form of Stockholm and Salt Lake City. This is why the DOSB has elected to focus on a bid for a later Winter Games.
Which cities are in the running?
The DOSB has actively involved Berlin, Hamburg, Leipzig, Munich, and the western state of North Rhine-Westphalia (NRW) in the bidding process. In the case of a summer bid, Berlin is considered a lock – with the possibility of Berlin being part of a joint bid with Munich, which hosted the European Championships last August – an event that's been described as something of a mini-Olympics.
Alternatively, the shorter distance between Berlin and Hamburg would also make that an attractive combination. The Rhine-Ruhr Initiative hopes to bring the 2032 Summer Olympics to the densely populated state of NRW. Interestingly, the IOC statutes even allow the possibility of four cities or clusters hosting the Games.
How many bid attempts for Olympic Games in Germany have failed and why?
The last Games to be hosted in Germany were in Munich in 1972. Since 1986, there have been a total of seven failed bid attempts. The Rhine-Ruhr Initiative for 2032 failed with its bid in the IOC's pre-selection process.
The bids for the 2022 Winter Games in Munich and the 2024 Summer Games in Hamburg failed to win the support of the local public. More and more people in Germany are taking an increasingly critical view of hosting gigantic sporting events – among other things because of several scandals in top sporting federations surrounding the International Olympic Committee (IOC), because of the immense costs incurred by the hosts, and due to environmental concerns.
What does the DOSB aim to achieve with its initiative?
The German Olympic Sports Confederation is aiming to work with the German public to develop a bid concept that will be capable of gaining majority support. To this end, there are to be various ways of getting involved: Ten specialist discussions with experts from the worlds of sport, business or sustainability will be shown via livestream from August 2023, and public dialog forums will be held in potential bid cities.
In addition, the DOSB has created a website with explanatory videos, surveys and information about the bidding process (https://deine-spiele.de/en/).
What ecological concerns do Germans have about hosting the Olympic Games?
They are particularly concerned about the Winter Games.
"I think Germany is completely unsuitable for the Winter Olympics," Thomas Fischer of Environmental Action Germany (DUH) told DW.
"Without artificial snow and without doing it together with Austria, you won't be able to implement it in (the German states of) Bavaria, Baden-Württemberg or Thuringia at all."
From a climate perspective, he said, a Winter Olympics in Germany would be "a complete disaster. There are other places in the world that are clearly more suitable."
Fischer is much more positive when discussion the possibility of Germany hosting a Summer Games.
"I think we could manage Summer Games well, even more environmentally friendly than in many other countries in the world," Fischer said.
After all, the infrastructure in the cities is already largely in place. On its website, the DOSB pledges not to build any new sporting facitilities as part of a bid.
"The bid concept is entirely based on existing or temporarily upgraded sports facilities," it says.
What is the timetable leading up to a possible Olympic bid for Germany?
The DOSB plans to publish a summary of the results of the public debate on December 2 – and hopes to be able to announce a "declaration of intent" to launch a bid.
Assuming it gets that far, the DOSB would then proceed to drawing up a detailed plan for a German Olympic bid, which would be unveiled to the public in May 2024. This would include information about the timing (2036/2040 or 2038/2042) and the venues (a minimum of two and a maximum of four).
The German public will get their opportunity to vote on the proposal in referendums in the autumn of 2024. If a single region votes against hosting the Olympics, the project will be dead for the entire country. If the vote is positive, the DOSB General Assembly will vote on the official bid to the IOC in December 2024.
The decision on awarding the 2036 Olympics is expected at the IOC Session during the Winter Games in Milan and Cortina d'Ampezzo in February 2026.
This article was translated from German.