The seaside city of Durban has been named by the South African Sports and Olympic Committee (SASOC) to campaign to host the 2036 or 2040 Olympic and Paralympic Games. If successful, South Africa’s third most populous city would become the first African host of the Olympics marquee Games.
Chosen ahead of contenders Johannesburg and Cape Town, Durban with a population of about 4 million is expected to be the lead city in a bid that will include venues and events in other regions across the country. This month an independent evaluation panel conducted city presentations and venue visits to assess each city’s proposed hosting concept and facilities.
In a “closely contested” competition, a SASOC statement claimed “all three cities presented strong proposals, demonstrating South Africa’s existing sporting infrastructure, experience in hosting major international events and potential to deliver world-class competitions.
The International Olympic Committee (IOC) is expected to entertain online presentations from all candidate cities, including Durban, in the next month. SASOC officials have offered few details so far other than plans to center the Games around the 2010 FIFA World Cup Moses Mabhida Stadium with a current capacity of 56,000. No financial details have been released.
Following IOC guidelines, SASOC will focus on using or refurbishing existing facilities or temporary venues, avoiding new construction unless there is a long-term need.
According to the SASOC statement “a central pillar of the candidature will be its potential to attract investment, create employment and accelerate infrastructure development.”
The IOC will name a shortlist of interested candidates March 2027 that will include candidates selected for the Strategic Dialogue phase of the new bid process introduced earlier this month. Then in December, the list could be further reduced by the naming of potential hosts on an IOC Executive Board approved Targeted Dialogue list. The host city election will take place in 2029.
If Durban or any other city misses a cut, they can remain in the IOC’s Continuous Dialogue and be considered for the 2040 edition.
Countries interested in bidding for 2036 have until Friday to signal intentions to the IOC. So far Germany, Hungary, India, Qatar, Republic of Korea, South Africa and Türkiye have applied.
South Africa made one previous bid to host with Cape Town placing third behind Rome and winner Athens for the 2004 Games.
The Youth Olympic Games are scheduled to open Saturday in Dakar, Senegal marking the first time any Olympics edition will take place on the African continent.
Durban hosted the IOC Session in 2011 when PyeongChang, South Korea was elected to host the 2018 Olympic Winter Games.
Durban was elected to host the 2022 Commonwealth Games when its campaign went unopposed, but Commonwealth Sport later stripped the city of its right to stage the event when it missed important financial milestones.
Last month Munich won the domestic vote to represent Germany. Budapest would be Hungary’s bid and Ahmedabad has been named by India.
Jeonbuk State has proposed a joint bid with Seoul for the Republic of Korea and Doha would represent Qatar. Istanbul is likely Türkiye’s choice as host.
The next Summer Games are set to open in Los Angeles in 2028 following by Brisbane, Australia in 2032.