A ramp at the Brandenburg Gate, new apartments at the exhibition center and rings on prominent buildings: the Senate has presented the concept for Berlin’s Olympic bid. For the first time, specific costs are also mentioned.
- Berlin Senate passes concept for bid for Olympic Games
- Opening ceremony planned at Tempelhofer Feld
- Bridge should lead to the Brandenburg Gate
- Costs estimated at well over six billion euros
The Berlin Olympic concept for the current application envisages an opening ceremony on Tempelhofer Feld. The Senate announced this on Tuesday. Among other things, a golden pyramid is to be built there.
The opening would therefore not take place in the Olympic Stadium. According to the Olympic concept, a main attraction should also be a bridge leading to the Brandenburg Gate up to the height of the Quadriga.
According to the concept, a “yellow course” is planned as a connection through the city between the Olympic Stadium as the central competition location, the Brandenburg Gate as the location of the medal ceremonies and the Tempelhofer Feld. Particularly striking places, such as the television tower, should be decorated with huge Olympic rings.
Berlin Olympic bid
Together with Brandenburg, Saxony and Mecklenburg-Western Pomerania, competitions in 30 sports with 46 disciplines are to be held at the Olympic Games. There are 23 sports in the Paralympic Games. According to the concept, 97 percent of existing sports facilities will be used.
In addition to the competitions in Berlin, the equestrian competitions are planned in Leipzig, and sailing will take place in Warnemünde. The Olympic football tournament would be held in Cottbus, Dresden, Hanover, Wolfsburg, Leipzig and Rostock.
To this end, various competitions will take place as “city events” on Tempelhofer Feld or other attractive locations in the capital.
According to plans, an Olympic Village will be built near the Berlin Trade Fair, where 85 percent of all athletes will live. It includes 2,400 apartments and, according to Wegner, will also be built if Berlin does not win the contract.
Berlin Olympic bid
Senate estimates costs at more than 6.4 billion euros
On Tuesday, the Berlin Senate also presented a rough cost estimate for hosting the Olympic Games for the first time. Accordingly, around 4.8 billion euros are planned for the organization and implementation of the competitions. According to the Senate, these would be completely refinanced through the sale of tickets, broadcast rights and sponsorship – a profit of around 420 million euros is actually expected here. 25 percent of this profit would have to be paid to the International Olympic Committee.
When it comes to investments in sports infrastructure, however, money would mainly be spent by the public sector. Almost 1.6 billion euros are planned here. According to the Senate, the sum would be invested over a period of 14 years in the modernization or expansion of competition venues, the upgrading of popular sports venues or targeted transport projects.
There are also expenses for security measures during the games, in particular for additional police forces, disaster control and administrative tasks. The Senate has not yet quantified the costs. They would have to be financed by the federal government and the states involved.
DOSB will decide on September 26th
The application is for the Summer Olympics and Paralympic Games in 2036, 2040 or 2044. Berlin is one of four German Olympic candidates alongside Munich, Hamburg and the Rhine-Ruhr region around Cologne.
On September 26th, the German Olympic Sports Confederation (DOSB) will decide which candidate will start an application to the International Olympic Committee.
Planning for competitions in large Berlin sports venues:
- Olympic Stadium: Athletics, Rugby 7s final round
- Olympic Park: swimming, water polo finals, beach volleyball
- Stadium An der Alten Försterei Rugby 7s preliminary round and possibly football
- Uber Arena: handball finals, judo
- Max Schmeling Hall Volleyball
- Planned new arena for Alba Berlin: basketball finals and gymnastics
- Jahn Sports Park: Hockey
- Sports forum: fencing, shooting
- Poststadion: Modern pentathlon
- Tempodrom: weight lifting
- Swimming and diving hall on Landsberger Allee Water diving, synchronized swimming, water polo preliminary round
- Velodrome: track cycling, wrestling
These places in the city area should be used
- East Side Gallery: Open water swimming and triathlon
- former Tempelhof Airport: archery, 3×3 basketball, sport climbing, skateboarding and BMX freestyle
- Mellowpark: BMX Racing
- Gardens of the World: Mountain Bike
- Messe/dock9: badminton, table tennis, rhythmic gymnastics
- Waldbühne: final round in boxing, taekwondo
- Brandenburg Gate: marathon runners, walkers and road cyclists
With the announcement of the trade fair as a location, the Senate also revealed the name of a new congress hall for up to 5,000 people: it will be called “dock9”. Construction is scheduled to start this year.
The planned sports facilities in Brandenburg, Leipzig and Rostock:
- Brandenburg an der Havel: canoe racing and rowing (Beetzsee)
- Bad Saarow: Golf
- Hoppegarten Racecourse: Shooting decisions with the shotgun
- Cottbus: football
- Leipzig: football, preliminary round in basketball, equestrian competitions, handball group phase
- Markkleeberg Canoe Park: canoe slalom, kayak cross decisions
- Rostock: football, sailing competitions
Broadcast: rbb24 Inforadio, May 5th, 2026, 1:00 p.m
Audio: rbb24 Inforadio, May 5th, 2026, Sebastian Schöbel
