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Florida has hosted the Super Bowl. This summer, it will host World Cup action. And year after year, it’s one of the epicenters of spring training for Major League Baseball.
So what’s next? Well, according to Jason Siegel, president and executive director of the Greater Orlando Sports Commission, the biggest event of all: The 2040 Summer Olympics.
In an interview with Francs Jeux, Siegel discussed the idea, noting, “We are in discussions with the IOC about various opportunities, which I can't talk about yet.”
The groundwork for a bid is being laid, however.
“Last year, we went to London and then to Paris for the Olympic Games, where I had eight or nine meetings with different international federations and sports governing bodies in the United States. In April, representatives from our city and county accompanied us to Lausanne to meet with several international federations. Just recently, our team was in Sunderland for the opening match of the Rugby World Cup to meet with World Rugby again.”
Also on the state’s resume, says Games Bids, are the 2023 North American Cup in Fencing, the 2024 U.S. Olympic Marathon trials, Soccer trials held prior to the Copa América and the 2023 national para swimming championships.
Make no mistake: It takes a lot to host the Games: Not just sports facilities (and college venues won’t cut it; these have to be built for international-level competition – and able to handle tens of thousands of spectators) but housing, transportation and the myriad other needs.
Siegel told interviewers the state was well aware of the gravity of the situation, and that steps were being taken to get ready to meet the requirements.
“We are showing our commitment to growing our business. There will be opportunities with all the events planned in the United States between now and 2034, and we want to make sure we are well-positioned for that by having constructive discussions. We have made five trips to Europe in the last 13 months, which is five times more than we usually do.”
Additionally, says Siegel, outreach to some powerful allies is ongoing.
“We are continuing our dialogue with LA28. Currently, most of the discussions are about hosting qualifying events, international qualifying events, or U.S. Olympic qualifying events. The Women's Volleyball World Championship would qualify three teams for the Olympic Games, and we have similar discussions underway. We've had excellent discussions with FIBA, and if the U.S. men's and women's basketball teams go on tour before the Olympics, we would be very happy to host them.”
Officials at the University of Florida’s Warrington College of Business, while they believe Florida is capable, see the hosting game as an endeavor fraught with peril. Amanda Phalin, Ph.D., an instructional associate professor and economist in the Management Department, was blunt.
“Only one city has ever earned a profit from hosting the Olympics — Los Angeles in 1984 — so, while LA28 may turn out to be a good bet for our friends in California, the long-term return on investment for other cities is negligible to negative.”
The numbers, she adds, are mind-boggling. “Hosting the games is massively expensive — from a bid that can cost more than $100 million to constructing pricey infrastructure, like stadiums, that may sit largely unused after the big event (Olympic-built venues in Athens and Beijing, for example). Other infrastructure that may need to be built or expanded and/or updated includes housing/hotels for athletes, staff and tourists; transportation, such as roads, airports, and train stations; and security. Even though broadcast revenues now regularly top $1 billion, the International Olympic Committee keeps more than half.”
Other researchers have expressed doubt about the viability of hosting in general (not Florida-specific, however), from this paper written in 2015 to this one from 2025. Some U.S. cities have backed away from the bidding table, including Boston (an effort driven by No Boston Olympics) and Denver, all the way back in 1976.
Florida, however, represents a very different game board from those cities. The state’s biggest industry and most lucrative revenue stream is tourism and it actively welcomes visitors from across the country and around the world. From attractions like theme parks to agritourism in the citrus farming economy, the Sunshine State has much to generate tourism. It’s also a top state for lodging, with thousands of hotels – along with plenty of properties in the VRBO, Airbnb and other networks.
Siegel told Francs Jeux has seen Orlando be disappointed by not being named a World Cup host city but says the area learned from its missteps.
Officials, he noted, had to “honestly examine the reasons for this failure and see what we could do to improve our position, whether it was behind the scenes, relationship building, etc. One of the major positives that came out of this was that Orange County leaders decided to invest an additional $400 million in our stadiums, which was a victory.”
In fact, he notes, it put Orlando back on the world stage.
“Thanks to the great work we did, we opened the door to hosting the Club World Cup. We were able to host games not only at Camping World Stadium, our college soccer stadium, but also at our MLS stadium. The ability to manage both venues simultaneously is the basis for starting discussions with rugby, which may be looking for multiple stadiums in the same market, and the Women's World Cup in 2031. We are trying to learn from the past to position ourselves as strong a host city as possible.”
Obviously, no immediate decision from the IOC is forthcoming but Florida is continuing to lobby. But Florida (and Orlando in particular) has its eyes on the prize.
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