Survey strengthened Swiss candidacy for the 2038 Winter Olympic Games
A new representative survey has shown that the Swiss candidacy for the 2038 Winter Olympic and Paralympic Games currently has the support of a majority of the population, giving organizers an important political and communication argument in the continuation of talks with the International Olympic Committee. According to research by the gfs.bern institute, published on April 30, 2026, 61 percent of respondents would vote in favor of holding the Games in Switzerland if the matter were put to a referendum. Within that share, 33 percent of respondents strongly support the project, and 28 percent support it moderately. Opposition remains visible: 21 percent of respondents are completely against it, 13 percent are mostly against it, while 4 percent are undecided.
The result is significant because it comes at a stage in which the Swiss project is not an ordinary sports announcement, but a candidate in a special procedure taking place directly with the IOC. Switzerland entered the so-called privileged dialogue for the 2038 Games back in autumn 2023, which means that the IOC is holding exclusive talks with it and, until the end of 2027, is keeping open the possibility that Switzerland itself will receive the hosting rights. Such a status does not mean an automatic awarding of the Games, but it does mean that other potential candidates are currently not conducting an equal procedure for the same year. That is why the new survey is not only a measurement of public mood, but also an indicator of whether the project can withstand political pressure in a country where earlier Olympic initiatives stumbled precisely over the question of public support.
Majority support, but also a message that the project still has to convince the public
The gfs.bern institute emphasized in its analysis that support is majority-based, but not unconditional. The research was conducted between March 6 and 20, 2026, on a sample of 1007 people older than 16 from the Swiss population, using a combination of an online panel and telephone interviews. The data were weighted to be representative, and the stated margin of error is plus or minus 3.1 percentage points. Alongside the 61 percent support itself, it is also important that about three quarters of respondents had already heard about the possibility of holding the Winter Olympic and Paralympic Games in Switzerland. This shows that the topic has not remained within the narrow circle of sports and political actors, but has already entered the broader public debate.
At the same time, the research warns that the opinion of part of the citizenry has not yet been fully formed. The candidacy organizers point to the figure that only 24 percent of respondents believe that Switzerland should not even try to organize the Olympic and Paralympic Winter Games. This leaves room for further persuasion of the public, but also for growth in opposition if the issues of costs, sustainability and project management are not clarified convincingly enough. Gfs.bern concludes that support is built where financing, trust and implementation are perceived as credible. In other words, the sporting appeal of the event itself is not enough; decisive will be the ability of the organizers to show how risks will be limited and transparently distributed.
Decentralized model as the central element of the candidacy
The Swiss candidacy is based on a concept that differs substantially from the traditional Olympic model focused on one host city. The Switzerland 2038 project is conceived as a national, decentralized organization in which competitions and key functions would be distributed across multiple regions and language areas. According to the official project description, the IOC has enabled, in the newer procedure, candidacies that do not rely on one city or one region, but on a broader national structure. Swiss organizers therefore emphasize that they want to use existing sports, transport and organizational infrastructure, instead of basing the project on major construction of new facilities.
The official master plan states that curling and speed skating would be held in Geneva, and figure skating and short track in Lausanne. Alpine skiing is planned for Crans-Montana, ice hockey is distributed between Zurich, Zug and Lugano, while Engelberg would host cross-country skiing, Nordic combined and ski jumping. Biathlon is planned in Lenzerheide, bobsleigh, luge and skeleton in the St. Moritz and Celerina area, and freestyle skiing and snowboard in St. Moritz and Silvaplana. According to available plans, Lausanne is being considered for the opening ceremony, and Bern for the closing ceremony.
Such a distribution has a clear political and financial logic. Organizers want to present the Games as a national project that includes different regions, but also as a response to criticism of earlier Olympic candidacies that in many countries were associated with excessive costs, new construction interventions and long-term burdens on public budgets. In the survey, 79 percent of respondents expressed the belief that Switzerland has the necessary infrastructure and sufficiently developed mobility to organize a major international event. Also, 74 percent of respondents see decentralized organization as an advantage because it relies on existing structures and experience with international competitions.
Financing remains the most sensitive issue
Despite majority support, financial risks remain the main source of caution. According to the published survey results, 57 percent of respondents are concerned about possible deficits and costs that could ultimately be borne by the public sector. This issue is especially important in the Swiss political system, in which referendums and direct declarations by citizens can decisively influence major public projects. Earlier Olympic initiatives in individual cantons and regions failed precisely because voters judged that the risks outweighed the benefits.
The Federal Council, the Swiss executive authority, supported the candidacy plans in January 2026 and opened a consultation on possible federal support of up to 200 million Swiss francs. In doing so, the government described the project as an opportunity to strengthen sport, technological innovation, social cohesion, tourism and the country’s international image. Still, official support does not remove political uncertainty. According to Swiss media reports, the way in which parliament will shape decisions on the project could open the question of a possible referendum, and organizers had earlier warned that such a scenario could seriously complicate the candidacy.
The Switzerland 2038 association claims that from the beginning it has been developing a model in which private financing would cover 82 percent of the costs of organizing the Games. It is especially emphasized that the public sector should not have to assume any potential deficit, but that private funds would be sought for guarantees. Co-president of the association Lenka Kölliker stated that no public money is being sought for guarantees in the amount of 200 million francs, but private financing, and that the organizers feel strong support from the business community. Such messages are clearly directed toward the most sensitive part of the public debate: the question of who pays if the optimistic projections do not materialize.
The IOC is monitoring the political process and expects conditions to be fulfilled
The International Olympic Committee is conducting a special procedure for future hosts of the Winter Games in circumstances in which the number of reliable and politically acceptable candidates is decreasing. Climate change, organization costs, public resistance and the need to use existing venues have changed the way major winter competitions are planned. The IOC selected the French Alps for 2030, and Salt Lake City in the U.S. state of Utah for 2034, while for 2038 an exclusive procedure is being conducted with Switzerland.
According to information presented by the IOC at the beginning of 2026, the Swiss candidacy could move into the next phase if the political and organizational conditions are met by the end of the year. Publicly available information about the privileged dialogue states that Switzerland has room until the end of 2027 for further development and adjustment of the candidacy. This means that current public support, the official financial structure and the final operational plan will be observed together. Switzerland’s advantage is not only in sports facilities, but also in the transport network, experience in organizing winter competitions and the fact that the IOC headquarters has been in Lausanne since 1915.
But precisely because the procedure has advanced so far, every new piece of data about public mood gains greater weight. Support of 61 percent helps organizers in talks with the IOC, but it does not close the debate. Gfs.bern warns that fundamental skepticism remains connected to costs, trust in responsible institutions, the relationship with the IOC and environmental dilemmas. These are issues that cannot be solved only with promotional slogans, but require precise budgets, clear contractual obligations and a politically acceptable oversight model.
Sustainability, climate and legacy as a test of credibility
Organizers of the Swiss candidacy often point out that the 2038 Games would be sustainable because they would not be based on the construction of new major venues. In the survey, however, 53 percent of respondents expressed doubt about the possibility of sustainably holding the Winter Olympic and Paralympic Games in the context of climate change. That reservation is not unusual. The future of winter sports is increasingly discussed through the prism of snow reliability, energy consumption, artificial snowmaking, transport emissions and the pressure of major events on Alpine areas.
The Swiss project tries to answer these objections through a combination of existing venues, decentralized organization and reliance on public transport. This is in line with the newer direction of the IOC, which demands more rational planning and a smaller infrastructural footprint from hosts. Still, sustainability will be assessed according to concrete figures, not only according to the concept. The public will, according to available indicators, especially monitor whether the distribution across multiple cities will reduce the need for new facilities or increase the complexity of logistics, travel and security organization. Part of the respondents, 47 percent of them, according to the survey, also view the decentralized model critically because of fears that it could weaken the shared Olympic experience.
For the organizers, this is a double challenge. On the one hand, decentralization is the main argument that the Games can be held more economically and sustainably. On the other hand, precisely the dispersion of competitions raises questions about atmosphere, event accessibility, coordination costs and the way in which a sense of a unified sporting event is created. Switzerland 2038 states that it is incorporating into its planning experiences from the first highly decentralized Games in Milano Cortina 2026, which shows that the model is still being adjusted and that the final form of the candidacy is not closed.
The political lesson of earlier failed attempts
Switzerland has a long winter sports tradition and has twice hosted the Winter Olympic Games in St. Moritz, in 1928 and 1948. Precisely for that reason, the return of the Games to the country after 90 years is a politically and symbolically powerful idea. But that tradition is not enough to win the domestic debate. Earlier attempts at candidacy in regions such as Graubünden and Valais encountered voter resistance, primarily because of costs, public guarantees and environmental issues. The current candidacy is clearly shaped as an answer to those defeats: instead of a regional project, a national model is being offered; instead of new construction, existing facilities are emphasized; instead of public coverage of deficits, private financing of risks is highlighted.
The new survey shows that such an approach currently has a better starting position than earlier initiatives, but also that opponents of the project have clear topics on which they can build a campaign. Financing, democratic legitimacy, the relationship with the IOC and climate sustainability will probably remain the main points of debate. If the project becomes the subject of stronger political conflict in the coming months, support may change. In the Swiss context, in which direct democracy is an important part of political culture, figures from one survey cannot be interpreted as lasting confirmation, but as a current advantage that organizers still have to preserve.
Why the survey is important right now
The publication of the results comes at a moment when the Swiss candidacy is trying to present itself as a realistic, financially controlled and socially acceptable model for a new phase of the Winter Olympic Games. If it turns out that the public believes in cost limitation and the use of existing infrastructure, Switzerland could become an example of a country that organizes the Games without a large wave of new construction. If, however, it turns out that the financial guarantees are unclear or that the public sector nevertheless assumes too much risk, current support could quickly melt away.
For the IOC, the Swiss project is important because it fits into the broader change of the Olympic movement. The Winter Games are increasingly difficult to award to places that have the climatic conditions, the political will and the financial capacity for organization. Switzerland has strong winter infrastructure, developed public transport and an international sporting reputation, but it must prove that its model is not only administratively feasible, but also democratically convincing. The survey with 61 percent support shows that this possibility exists. The next phase will show whether the initial majority can be turned into a stable mandate for one of the largest sporting projects in the country in this century.
Sources:
- Switzerland 2038 – publication of the results of the representative gfs.bern survey on support for the candidacy for the 2038 Winter Olympic and Paralympic Games. (link)
- gfs.bern – methodology and analysis of the research on support for the Swiss candidacy, including the sample, implementation period and margin of error. (link)
- Switzerland 2038 – official project description, privileged dialogue with the IOC and decentralized concept of the candidacy. (link)
- Switzerland 2038 – master plan of proposed venues and schedule of sports by Swiss locations. (link)
- International Olympic Committee – information on the privileged dialogue with Switzerland and possible transition to the next phase of the procedure for the 2038 Games. (link)
- SWI swissinfo.ch / Keystone-SDA – report on the Swiss government’s support for the candidacy and the proposal of federal support of up to 200 million francs. (link)
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