Luca Buonfiglio is openly considering holding the Summer Olympics in Italy. © ANSA / PIERRE TEYSSOT

After Olympic successes: Does Italy now want the Summer Games?

Will the Olympics soon return to Italy? The Milan/Cortina Winter Olympics have given Italy a boost, and the country is now considering bidding for the Summer Games.

February 19, 2026

From: cst/dpa

The Winter Games in Northern Italy and South Tyrol have been a great success for the country so far. The organization is running smoothly, the media coverage has been positive, and the sporting achievements have further boosted morale. Therefore, official consideration is now being given to hosting the Summer Games in Italy as well.

The president of Italy's National Olympic Committee (CONI), Luciano Buonfiglio, has identified Rome as the ideal host city. "I believe all the necessary conditions are in place to prepare a bid," Buonfiglio said on Thursday. He added that any bid must be coordinated with the government. "Rome already has a good percentage of existing facilities. I believe Italy deserves to host the Summer Olympics," he concluded.

Giorgia Meloni on Wednesday during the Short Track race. © ANSA / TERESA SUAREZ

Italian Prime Minister Giorgia Meloni also did not rule it out. "We'll see, we'll take it one step at a time," commented the head of government, who watched the short track race in Milan on Wednesday.

Rome was already thinking about the 2024 Olympics.

The idea of ​​hosting the Summer Olympics in Rome again, after the 1960 Games, is not new. In September 2016, the then mayor of Rome, Virginia Raggi, announced that she would no longer support Rome's bid for 2024 because she considered it "irresponsible" to host the Games given the city's financial situation – she feared high costs, new debt, and strain on infrastructure.

Subsequently, the Rome City Council voted to abandon the bid, and the Italian Olympic Committee withdrew Rome's official candidacy. The Summer Games were held in Paris in 2024.