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Hosting a Special Olympics International Event

Fireworks going off at a stadium as a large crowd watches.
Athletes watch fireworks during the World Games Abu Dhabi 2019 Opening Ceremony.

Special Olympics competitions take place every day, all around the world. On the international scale, Special Olympics currently hosts the World Games, the World Winter Games, and the Unified Cup. Our athletes also look forward to the addition of the DanceSport World Championship, the Unified Tennis Global Tournament and the Unified Basketball 3x3 Tournament.

Special Olympics uses an ongoing bid process to consult with any interested party that would like to learn more about hosting a Special Olympics international event. A timeline of upcoming events is included below.

World Winter Games Turin (Italy and France) 2025, 3x3 Unified Basketball (host announced 2024) 2025, and Unified Volleyball Tournament (Host announced 2024) 2025; Unified Cup (Host announced 2024) 2026; World Games Santiago Chile 2027, Dancesport Championship (Host announced 2026) 2027; Unified Tennis Championship (Host announced 2027) 2028; World Winter Games Switzerland 2029, 3x3 Unified Basketball (Host announced 2028) 2029; Unified Cup (Host announced 2028) 2030.

We would love to hear about your interest in hosting an event. Please reach out to Lou Lauria, Chief of Sport and Competition, to set up an introduction.

“Just bidding for the World Winter Games opened new doors for us as we were able to have conversations on the level of our national government that were not there before.”
Bruno Barth, National Director, Special Olympics Switzerland
“Special Olympics [events] are a great platform of friendship. Everyone is a messenger of the Special Olympics spirit, so let’s share the warmth of the Special Olympics family and write together a new page of human civilization.”
H.E. Han Zheng, Former Mayor, Shanghai, China