Munich has taken a major step towards bringing the Olympic Games back to Germany after a strong majority voted in favour of a future bid, Afrosport reports.
In Sunday’s referendum, 66.4 per cent of voters supported the proposal for Munich to pursue hosting rights for the Summer Olympics in 2036, 2040, or 2044.
City mayor Dieter Reiter hailed the result, saying, “Munich clearly voted yes.”
Joerg Ammon, President of the Bavarian State Sports Association (BLSV), described the outcome as a “dream result”, while voter turnout reached 42 per cent — the highest in the city’s history.
The previous record of 37.5 per cent came in 2001 during the vote to build the Allianz Arena, home of European football giants Bayern Munich.
Munich last hosted the Games in 1972 and is one of four German regions exploring a bid. Berlin, Hamburg, and the Ruhr region will hold their own referenda in 2026, after which the German Olympic Sports Confederation (DOSB) will choose one official candidate later that year to be submitted to the International Olympic Committee (IOC).
Bavarian state premier Markus Söder welcomed the outcome and vowed to make a strong case, saying, “We will now flood the DOSB with our arguments.”
The vote marks a turnaround in public opinion after years of resistance to hosting the Olympics due to concerns over cost. Munich voters had previously rejected a bid for the 2022 Winter Games in 2013.
If successful, Munich would become the first German city to host the Summer Olympics twice, joining a shortlist of repeat Olympic hosts.
The next two editions of the Games will take place in Los Angeles (United States) in 2028 and Brisbane (Austraia) in 2032.
