The Summer Olympics are the world's largest multi-sport event, and are organized by the International Olympic Committee (IOC) every four years. Selection of the host city is done at an IOC Session four to seven years prior to the tournament, in which the IOC members vote between candidate cities which have submitted bids. As of the selection of the 2016 Summer Olympics, 28 games have been held in 22 cities in 19 countries. Bids have been made by 64 cities in 34 countries.
The bid process consists of two rounds. First, cities and national Olympic committees (NOCs) may show their interest and submit a preliminary bid, becoming applicant cities. Through analysis of the questionnaires, the IOC gave a weighted-average score to each city based on the scores obtained in each of the questionnaire's eleven themes: political and social support, general infrastructure, sports venues, Olympic Village, environment, accommodation, transport, security, past experience, finance, and legacy. IOC's executive committee then selects a short-list of candidate cities. The candidate cities are investigated by the IOC Evaluation Committee, who make an evaluation report. These submit a more extensive bid book and are subject to additional evaluation, which is presented to the IOC members. Voting occurs as an exhaustive ballot, which may occur through multiple rounds until a single city holds a majority of the votes. IOC members from a candidate NOC may not vote in any round while their country remains in the election.
The first three games were not subject to bids; the first IOC Session, in 1894, awarded the first games to Athens (1896) and Paris (1900), respectively. The 1904 Olympics were initially awarded to Chicago, but then moved to St. Louis to be co-located with the World Fair. A system with bids was introduced ahead of the 1908 Olympics, and were awarded to Rome. After the 1906 eruption of Mount Vesuvius, Italy returned the games to IOC, which awarded them to London. The 1916 Olympics were awarded to Berlin, but canceled due to the First World War. The 1940 Olympics were originally awarded to Tokyo, but after the 1938 break-out of the Second Sino-Japanese War, they were returned to the IOC, who awarded them to Helsinki. The games, and the 1944 Olympics awarded to London, were ultimately canceled due to the Second World War. The 1956 Olympics were awarded to Melbourne, but Australian horse quarantine rules forced the equestrian events to be held in Stockholm. Three times there have been only a single bid, Stockholm in 1912, and Los Angeles in 1932 and 1984. Starting with the 2004 Olympics, only the highest-rated cities are short-listed for the final IOC vote. [1]
Paris and Los Angeles –who will host the games in 2024 and 2028 respectively –will join London as the only cities to host three Olympic Games. London, Antwerp, Munich and Sydney are the only cities to never have failed at winning a bid. St. Louis is the only city to have hosted the games without submitting a bid. Helsinki, Minneapolis, Montreal and Munich have bid for both Summer and Winter Olympics; all but Minneapolis have succeeded at winning Summer bids, but none have held Winter Olympics. Detroit is the most unsuccessful city, having failed seven times. Los Angeles has made the most bids, succeeding three times and failing six times. Amsterdam, Budapest and Lausanne have all failed five times. The United States has made the most bids, having bid for 22 games, including all games from 1944 through 1984. [1]
The following is a list of bids for the Summer Olympics. It consists of the year the games were held or scheduled to be held, the date the decision was made, the city and country which issued the bid, the votes at the IOC Session for each voting round, and the ultimate host of the games. The bid listed first for each games is the one selected by the IOC, whether or not it ultimately hosted the games. [1]
The following is a list of cities' bids. It lists the country, city, and year for which failed, withdrawn, and successful bids were submitted. Parentheses indicate that the city was awarded the games without a bidding process. A dagger (†) indicates that the city was awarded the games, but that they were ultimately not held in the city, either because the games were canceled or moved. An asterisk (*) indicates that the bid was not shortlisted. A double asterisk (**) indicates that the bid was withdrawn. [1]
| Country | City | Failed/Withdrawn bids | Successful bids |
|---|---|---|---|
 Argentina | Buenos Aires | 1936, 1956, 1968, 2004 | — |
 Australia | Brisbane | 1992 | 2032 |
| Hobart | 2020 | — | |
| Melbourne | 1996 | 1956 | |
| Sydney | — | 2000 | |
 Austria | Vienna | 1964 | — |
 Azerbaijan | Baku | 2016*, 2020* | — |
 Belgium | Antwerp | — | 1920 |
| Brussels | 1916, 1960, 1964 | — | |
 Brazil | Brasilia | 2000** | — |
| Rio de Janeiro | 1936, 2004*, 2012* | 2016 | |
 Canada | Montreal | 1944, 1956, 1972 | 1976 |
| Toronto | 1996, 2008 | — | |
 China | Beijing | 2000 | 2008 |
 Cuba | Havana | 1920, 2008*, 2012* | — |
 Czech Republic/Czechoslovakia | Prague | 1924, 2016* | — |
 Egypt | Alexandria | 1916, 1936 | — |
| Cairo | 2008* | — | |
 Finland | Helsinki | 1936, 1944 | 1940† 1952 |
 France | Lille | 2004* | — |
| Lyon | 1920, 1968 | — | |
| Paris | 1992, 2008, 2012 | 1900, 1924, 2024 | |
 Germany | Berlin | 1908, 2000 | 1916†, 1936 |
| Cologne | 1936 | — | |
| Frankfurt | 1936 | — | |
| Hamburg | 2024** | — | |
| Leipzig | 2012* | — | |
| Munich | — | 1972 | |
| Nuremberg | 1936 | — | |
 Great Britain | Birmingham | 1992 | — |
| London | — | 1908, 1948, 2012 | |
| Manchester | 1996, 2000 | — | |
 Greece | Athens | 1944, 1952, 1996 | 1896, 2004 |
 Hungary/ Austria-Hungary | Budapest | 1916, 1920, 1936, 1944, 1960, 2024** | — |
 Indonesia | Nusantara | 2036 | — |
 Ireland | Dublin | 1936 | — |
 Italy | Milan | 1908, 2000** | — |
| Rome | 1924, 1936, 1944, 2004, 2020**, 2024** | 1908†, 1960 | |
 Japan | Nagoya | 1988 | — |
| Osaka | 2008 | — | |
| Tokyo | 1960, 2016 | 1940†, 1964, 2020 | |
 Malaysia | Kuala Lumpur | 2008* | — |
 Mexico | Mexico City | 1956, 1960, 2036 | 1968 |
 Netherlands | Amsterdam | 1916, 1920, 1924, 1952, 1992 | 1928 |
 Puerto Rico | San Juan | 2004* | — |
 Qatar | Doha | 2016*, 2020* | — |
 Russia/ Soviet Union | Moscow | 1976, 2012 | 1980 |
| Saint Petersburg | 2004* | — | |
 South Africa | Cape Town | 2004 | — |
 South Korea | Seoul | — | 1988 |
 Spain | Barcelona | 1936 | 1992 |
| Madrid | 1972, 2012, 2016, 2020 | — | |
| Seville | 2004*, 2008* | — | |
 Sweden | Stockholm | 1952, 2004 | 1912, 1956 |
 Switzerland | Lausanne | 1936, 1944, 1948, 1952, 1960 | — |
 Thailand | Bangkok | 2008* | — |
 Turkey | Istanbul | 2000, 2004*, 2008, 2012*, 2020, 2036 | |
 United States | Atlanta | 1920 | 1996 |
| Baltimore | 1948 | — | |
| Boston | 2024 | — | |
| Chicago | 1952, 1956, 2016 | 1904† | |
| Cleveland | 1916, 1920 | — | |
| Detroit | 1944, 1952, 1956, 1960, 1964, 1968, 1972 | — | |
| Los Angeles | 1924, 1928, 1948, 1952, 1956, 1976, 1980, 2024** | 1932, 1984, 2028 | |
| Minneapolis | 1948, 1952, 1956 | — | |
| New York City | 2012 | — | |
| Philadelphia | 1920, 1948, 1952, 1956 | — | |
| San Francisco | 1956 | — | |
| St. Louis | — | 1904 | |
| Washington, D.C. | 2024 | — | |
 Uzbekistan | Tashkent | 2000** | — |
 Yugoslavia/ Serbia | Belgrade | 1992, 1996 | — |
The following is a list of bids submitted by each national Olympic committee, listing the country and years it bid. Only countries that have submitted bids from multiple cities are included. Successful bids are in boldface. A parenthesis indicates that the city was awarded the games without a bidding process. A dagger (†) indicates that the city was awarded the games, but that they were ultimately not held in the city, either because the games were cancelled or moved. [1]
| Country | Years |
|---|---|
| Australia | 1956, 1992, 1996, 2000, 2020, 2032 |
| Belgium | 1916, 1920, 1960, 1964 |
| Brazil | 1936, 2000, 2004, 2012, 2016 |
| Canada | 1944, 1956 1972, 1976, 1996, 2008 |
| Egypt | 1916, 1936, 2008 |
| France | 1900, 1920, 1924, 1968, 1992, 2004, 2008, 2012, 2024 |
| Germany | 1908, 1916†, 1936, 1972, 2000, 2012 |
| Great Britain | 1908, 1948, 1992, 1996, 2000, 2012 |
| Italy | 1908 †, 1924, 1936, 1944, 1960, 2000, 2004, 2020, 2024 |
| Japan | 1940†, 1960, 1964, 1988, 2008, 2016, 2020 |
| Russia/ Soviet Union | 1976, 1980, 2004, 2012 |
| Spain | 1924, 1936, 1940, 1972, 1992, 2004, 2008, 2012, 2016, 2020 |
| United States | 1904, 1916, 1920, 1924, 1928, 1932, 1944, 1948, 1952, 1956, 1960, 1964, 1968, 1972, 1976, 1980, 1984, 1996, 2012, 2016, 2024, 2028 |
| Summer Olympics | |
|---|---|
| Winter Olympics | |
| Summer Youth Olympics | |
| Winter Youth Olympics | |
1 – Games handed without bids submitted; 2 – Only one bid submitted; 3 – Bids submitted but no Games celebration; 4 – No bids submitted and no Games celebration  Olympic Gamesportal | |
Nine cities submitting bids to host the 2012 Summer Olympics and 2012 Summer Paralympics were recognised by the International Olympic Committee (IOC). The Committee shortlisted five of them—London, Madrid, Moscow, New York City, and Paris—from which London eventually prevailed; thus becoming the first city to host the Olympic Games for a third time. The bidding process for the 2012 Olympics was considered one of the most hotly contested in the history of the IOC. Paris was seen by some as the front-runner for much of the campaign, but skillful lobbying by London's supporters and an inspirational final presentation by Sebastian Coe led to the success of its bid.
Ten cities submitted bids to host the 2008 Summer Olympics and Paralympics that were recognized by the International Olympic Committee (IOC), five of which made the IOC Executive Committee's shortlist. The games were awarded to Beijing, China on July 13, 2001. The other shortlisted cities were Toronto, Paris, Istanbul and Osaka. Beijing won an absolute majority of votes after two rounds of voting, eliminating the need for subsequent rounds of voting. IOC delegates and the media identified a number of factors in its favor, including the size of the country, improvements in Chinese anti-doping enforcement, and its close loss to Sydney, Australia eight years earlier. In that bidding process, which chose the host city for the 2000 Summer Olympics, Beijing led every round of voting but lost in the final round to Sydney by two votes.
National Olympic Committees that wish to host an Olympic Games select cities within their territories to put forth bids for the Olympic Games. The staging of the Paralympic Games is automatically included in the bid. Since the creation of the International Olympic Committee (IOC) in 1894, which successfully appropriated the name of the Ancient Greek Olympics to create a modern sporting event, interested cities have rivaled for selection as host of the Summer or Winter Olympic Games. 51 different cities have been chosen to host the modern Olympics: three in Eastern Europe, five in East Asia, one in South America, three in Oceania, nine in North America and all the others in Western Europe. No Central American, African, Central Asian, Middle Eastern, South Asian, or Southeast Asian city has ever been chosen to host an Olympics.
Five cities made presentations to the IOC Session in Monte Carlo to host the 2000 Summer Olympics. The Games were awarded to Sydney, New South Wales, Australia, on 23 September 1993 at 18:17 UTC. The other cities were Beijing (China), Manchester, Berlin (Germany) and Istanbul (Turkey). 11 days earlier in a different process, Sydney had been chosen by the International Paralympic Committee to host the 2000 Summer Paralympics in Berlin, Germany.
Seven applicant cities presented bids to host the 2014 Winter Olympics and Paralympics to the International Olympic Committee (IOC). The IOC Executive Board shortlisted three cities—Sochi, Russia; Salzburg, Austria; and Pyeongchang, South Korea—with Sochi winning the IOC's July 2007 final vote.
Seven cities submitted bids for 2016 Summer Olympics and Paralympics on September 13, 2007, aiming to host the Games of the XXXI Olympiad. All of them were recognized by the International Olympic Committee (IOC) on September 14, 2007, becoming Applicant cities. Although several cities submitted to be in consideration to host the 2016 Olympics, including New York City and Los Angeles, on June 4, 2008, the IOC Executive Board shortlisted the four strongest bids to become Candidate cities. Those cities were Chicago, Madrid, Rio de Janeiro and Tokyo; the decisions were made during a meeting in Athens, Greece. The remaining Applicant cities—Baku, Doha and Prague—were eliminated.
The bidding for the 2010 Youth Olympics Games began in August 2007, to which nine cities presented their candidature files. In the competition to host the inaugural Youth Olympic Games in 2010, the list was shortened to five in November 2007. The list was further shortened to two in January 2008—Moscow and Singapore.
The 2012 Winter Youth Olympics (YOG) were an international youth multi-sport event featuring winter events that was planned to complement the Olympic Games. It featured athletes between the ages of 14 and 18.
The 2016 Winter Youth Olympics, officially known as the II Winter Youth Olympic Games, took place in and around Lillehammer, Norway, between 12 February and 21 February 2016. They were the fourth Youth Olympic Games and the second winter edition. Lillehammer was awarded the games on 7 December 2011 as the only candidate. The games reused venues from the 1994 Winter Olympics; this made Lillehammer the first city to host both regular and Youth Olympics. In addition to Lillehammer, sports were contested in Hamar, Gjøvik and Øyer.
Three cities applied with bids to host the 2018 Winter Olympics and Paralympics in October 2009. The International Olympic Committee, under the leadership of Jacques Rogge, received three bids on October 15, 2009. The cities of Annecy, France, in the French Alps, Munich, Germany, and Pyeongchang, South Korea, a two-time previous bidder, competed for the hosting rights to the event. This was the lowest number of bidding cities since the 1988 Summer Olympics, coincidentally also won by South Korea. The winning bid was announced on July 6, 2011, at the 123rd IOC Session in Durban, South Africa by IOC President Jacques Rogge at 5.22 pm local time Pyeongchang beat Munich and Annecy in the first round of votes with 63 of the 95 total votes.
The Youth Olympics are a multi-sport event organized by the International Olympic Committee (IOC) every two years, alternating between Summer Youth Olympics and Winter Youth Olympics. Selection of the host city is done by postal voting by the members of the IOC four to five years prior to the tournament, in which the IOC members vote between candidate cities which have submitted bids. Bids for the first four games have been made by 15 cities in 14 countries.
There were six bids initially submitted for the 2020 Summer Olympics. Tokyo was ultimately elected as the host city at the 125th IOC Session in Buenos Aires, Argentina, on 7 September 2013.
Baku 2020 was a bid for the 2020 Summer Olympics by the city of Baku and the National Olympic Committee of Azerbaijan. Bids were also placed by Doha, Istanbul, Madrid, Rome and the chosen host city of Tokyo.
A total of six bids were initially submitted for the 2022 Winter Olympics. Four of the bids were subsequently withdrawn by 1 October 2014, citing either the high costs of hosting the Games or the lack of local support, leaving Almaty, Kazakhstan and Beijing, China as the only two remaining candidate cities. Beijing was then elected as the host city at the 128th IOC Session in Kuala Lumpur, Malaysia, on 31 July 2015.
Six bids were made for the 2018 Summer Youth Olympics. The IOC selected three of the bids as candidate cities. On July 4, 2013, Buenos Aires was elected as host city.
Five bids were initially submitted for the 2024 Summer Olympics. Following withdrawals, two bidding cities—Paris and Los Angeles—were left in the process. In July 2017, the IOC agreed to award the 2024 and 2028 Games simultaneously. Los Angeles agreed to bid for the 2028 Games, effectively ceding the 2024 Games to Paris.
There were a total of four bids which were initially submitted for the 2022 Summer Youth Olympics. In September 2018, the International Olympic Committee agreed to award the 2022 Summer Youth Olympics to the city of Dakar in Senegal.
