The2032 Summer Olympics, officially theGames of the XXXV Olympiad and also known asBrisbane 2032 orBris2032, is an upcoming internationalmulti-sport event scheduled to take place from 23 July to 8 August 2032, withBrisbane, Queensland, Australia, as the main host city.
As part of the new Olympic bid process, the Future Host Commission of theInternational Olympic Committee (IOC) nominated Brisbane as its preferred candidate on 24 February 2021. The Brisbane bid was approved on 21 July 2021 during the 138th IOC Session in Tokyo.
The new IOC bidding process was approved at the134th IOC Session on 24 June 2019 inLausanne,Switzerland.[2] The key proposals, driven by the relevant recommendations from Olympic Agenda 2020, are:
Establish a permanent, ongoing dialogue to explore and create interest among cities/regions/countries and National Olympic Committees for any Olympic event
Create two Future Host Commissions (Summer and Winter Games) to oversee interest in future Olympic events and report to the IOC executive board
Give the IOC Session more influence by having non-executive board members form part of the Future Host Commissions.[3][2]
The IOC also modified theOlympic Charter to increase its flexibility by removing the date of election from 7 years before the games and changing the host from a single city/region/country to multiple cities, regions, or countries.
The change in the bidding process was criticised by members of the German bid as "incomprehensible" and hard to surpass "in terms of non-transparency".[4]
According to Future Host Commission terms of reference with rules of conduct, the new IOC bidding system is divided into two dialogue stages:[5]
Continuous Dialogue: Non-committal discussions between the IOC and Interested Parties (City/Region/Country/NOC interested in hosting) concerning hosting future Olympic events.
Targeted Dialogue: Targeted discussions with one or more Interested Parties (called Preferred Host(s)), as instructed by the IOC Executive Board. This follows a recommendation by the Future Host Commission as a result of Continuous Dialogue.
On 24 February 2021, the Future Host Commission named Brisbane as its preferred candidate for the 2032 Summer Olympics, and the IOC formally invited the Brisbane bid committee andAustralian Olympic Committee to engage in targeted dialogue. Committee chairwomanKristin Kloster Aasen cited Brisbane's "high level of expertise in hosting major international sports events", the quality of its transport infrastructure (citing its performance during the2018 Commonwealth Games), and a favourable climate.[6]
At the 138thIOC Session in Tokyo on 21 July 2021, the IOC's delegates passed areferendum to officially award the 2032 Summer Olympics to Brisbane. In the voting, 72 of the delegates voted "Yes", 5 voted "No" and 3 other voters abstained. Having been awarded the hosting rights 11 years and 2 days in advance, this is the most time a host city has had in planning and organizing an Olympic Games.[8]
From the 2021 selection of the city as the host for the 2032 Summer Olympics, Brisbane has 11 years to prepare for the games. A feasibility study commissioned by the Southeast Queensland Council of Mayors in 2019 suggested that the Games could be a catalyst for increased transport and infrastructure investment. Additionally, 68% of the required venues were judged to already exist or could be upgraded to an Olympic standard.[11] It concluded that, excluding government agency costs and contributions by the IOC and the private sector, the Games net cost would be $900 million.[11] This amount also did not include the suggested billions of dollars of greater investment in roads and public transport that would be required for the Games to be successful.[12]
In 2023, the federal and state governments reached a funding deal, with the Commonwealth contributing $2.5billion for the Brisbane Live arena and $1billion for other infrastructure. The remaining costs would be borne by the Queensland Government.[13]
The Venues were announced by the Queensland premier,David Crisafulli on March 25/ 2025[14] Venues will be located in three zones inSouth East Queensland: Brisbane as the main host city, and the neighbouring city ofGold Coast and the region ofSunshine Coast. Another two cities in Queensland will host football preliminaries:Cairns, andTownsville.Melbourne andSydney — Australia's two previous host cities in1956 and2000, respectively — will also host football preliminaries.
The Gabba was originally slated to be reconstructed to host the ceremonies and athletics, expanding it to 50,000 seats and adding a new pedestrian plaza.[21] The costs of the Gabba project were scrutinized by politicians; it was originally announced at a cost of $1 billion,[22][23] but by February 2023, it had increased to $2.7 billion, which would be paid entirely by the state.[24] Scrutiny over the Gabba project grew afterVictoria withdrew its hosting of the2026 Commonwealth Games due to cost concerns.[25] In December 2023, Lord MayorAdrian Schrinner withdrew his support for the project, stating that Brisbane 2032 had "become more about overpriced stadiums rather than the promise of vital transport solutions",[26][27] and that a parallel proposal to build a $137 million stadium on theBrisbane Showgrounds (which would have housed the Gabba's tenants during construction) was the "final straw".[27][28][29]
On 13 December 2023, Premier of QueenslandSteven Miles announced the establishment of a Brisbane 2032 infrastructure authority, and an independent review of the Games' venue plans.[30][31] On 18 March 2024, Miles announced that the Gabba reconstruction had been scrapped as a result, and thatLang Park (which is already scheduled to host rugby sevens and football) andQueensland Sport and Athletics Centre (QSAC) would host ceremonies and athletics instead.[32] Both venues would be refurbished,[32] while reports that had been commissioned as part of the Gabba project would be used to guide future work on the stadium.[33] A proposed 17,000-seat indoor arena known asBrisbane Live (which was slated to host aquatics events)[32][34] was also relocated to theRoma Street Parkland, rather than above theRoma Street railway station. The review recommended the construction of a new 55,000 seat stadium at Victoria Park, but Miles stated he wanted Brisbane 2032 to be a "low-cost" games, and that he could not justify a $3.4 billion stadium "when Queenslanders arestruggling with housing and other costs".[32]
On 29 October 2024, after theLiberal National Party of Queensland's victory in thestate election, incoming PremierDavid Crisafulli announced that he would launch a 100-day independent review of the stadium proposals. This included the Gabba rebuild and Victoria Park stadium proposals, as well as new proposals sent in by numerous design firms. The plan to have athletics at QSAC was scrapped. Crisafulli stated that he wanted the review to result in "something that Queenslanders are proud of."[35] In January 2025, former PremierAnnastacia Palaszczuk told ABC News that the review committee had internally decided to move forward with the Victoria Park stadium as apublic-private partnership; she argued that this was "absolutely a ridiculous idea", and that "it's going to cost a lot more — more billions and billions of dollars that Queenslanders don't have at the moment because of the cost-of-living pressures".[36]
On 25 March 2025, Crisafulli announced that the state government would go ahead with plans for a63,000-seat stadium at Victoria Park; the stadium will replace the Gabba, which will be demolished and redeveloped following the Games. He argued that "any other choice would have meant placing the government's interests ahead of the interests of Queensland" and felt that hosting athletics at QSAC would have been "embarrassing". Crisafulli apologized for breaking a campaign promise to not build a new stadium for the Olympics, stating that "I have to own that, and I will. I am sorry, it's my decision, and I accept that decision". According to the review, the stadium will cost an estimated AU$3.8 billion, although this figure is yet to be publicly confirmed.[18][19] Brisbane Live was also scrapped in favour of building a new 25,000-seat aquatics centre at theCentenary Pool Complex; after the Games, the capacity would be reduced to 8,000.[15] The arena will be relocated toWoolloongabba across from the Gabba, and will continue as a standalone "market-led" project without federal funding.[37][38]
Trains on the Queensland Rail city network in 2018
As of 2021, Brisbane has many infrastructure projects under construction or planning on top of the games.Cross River Rail, scheduled to be completed by 2029,[39] is an underground railway project through central Brisbane, which is under construction. Cross River Rail will see the development of a new rail line underneath Brisbane River, and the redevelopment of several stations in the Brisbane central business district with a cost of over A$17 billion.[39] Another transport infrastructure project is theBrisbane Metrobus rapid transit project, which consists of two routes with a headway of up to five minutes during peak times.[40] The project is scheduled to be completed in late 2024.[41] In May 2024, funding was announced for the proposedMaroochydore railway line, expected to be completed by 2032.[42]
Since 2020, the program of the Summer Olympics has consisted of mandatory core sports that persist between Games, and up to six optional sports proposed by the organizing committee in order to improve local interest.[45][46] The initial sports programme will be determined at an IOC Session in 2026.[47][48]
Various international sports federations and similar sanctioning bodies have announced plans to pursue bids for the addition of sports (optional or non-mandatory core sports) to the 2032 Games:
In February 2021,Softball Australia,Baseball Australia and theWorld Baseball Softball Confederation announced their intent to pursue baseball and softball for the Brisbane 2032 programs.[49] CEO of Baseball AustraliaGlenn Williams noted record broadcasting audiences for baseball and softball at the2020 Summer Olympics, with Softball Australia chair Richard Lindell also supporting the sports' reinstatement into the core Olympic program.[50] Both disciplines have medalled for Australia at the Olympics.[51] Baseball and softball was selected by the Los Angeles 2028 organising committee for inclusion in its program.[52] In August 2025, the mayor ofLogan City,Jon Raven, announced that his city's council were considering building aballpark in the area if baseball and softball were chosen as sports.[53] In September, he announced that the ballpark would be built withinGriffith University's Logan campus.[54]
In August 2021,World Netball announced that it would pursue the inclusion ofnetball, with backing fromNetball Australia.[62][63] The country has won theNetball World Cup eleven times since its inception. The bid faces a potential obstacle from the IOC's current policy of gender parity, asmen's netball is not at parity with women's netball in terms of participation and prominence. In August 2025, the chairperson of Netball Australia,Liz Ellis, made an argument for netball's inclusion, and highlighted that men's netball participation had been growing.[64]
In October 2023, theWorld Squash Federation announced its intent to pursuesquash for the 2032 Olympics. Squash was selected by the Los Angeles 2028 organising committee for inclusion in its program.[65]
In December 2023, theInternational Federation of American Football (IFAF) announced that it would pursueflag football for Brisbane 2032. Flag football was selected by the Los Angeles 2028 organising committee for inclusion in its program.[66][67] In June 2025, the AmericanNational Football League's Australia and New Zealand department general manager Charlotte Offord said that the inclusion of flag football for 2028 "was a really big moment for the sport and really uplifted the uptake, and we are very ambitious in our quest to try and get flag football into Brisbane 2032", given the increasing popularity of the sport in Australia.[68][69]
In April 2024, the Trail Running Association of Queensland (TRAQ) initiated a ten-year plan to pursuetrail running for Brisbane 2032. Around the same time, a campaign byMerrell was launched with a 455 kilometres (283 mi) relay from2012 host,London, to2024 host,Paris.[72]
Domestically, the Games will betelevised byNine Entertainment properties (including theNine Network), which acquired the rights to the Olympics from 2024 through 2032 in a deal announced on 8 February 2023.[79][80] These Games also mark the final year of the IOC's long-term broadcasting contracts withCMG in China,[81]European Broadcasting Union/Warner Bros. Discovery in Europe,[82] andNBCUniversal in the United States,[83] among others. In March 2025, NBCU signed an extension to air the Olympics through the2036 Games;[84] the IOC is otherwise waiting "for the best market conditions" to sign new broadcasting deals.[85][86][87]
^jurisdiction=Queensland; sector=government; corporateName=Department of State Development, Infrastructure and Planning (17 February 2023)."Brisbane 2032 Olympic and Paralympic Games".State Development, Infrastructure and Planning. Retrieved24 October 2025.{{cite web}}: CS1 maint: multiple names: authors list (link)
