Overview
- Delegates in Frankfurt approved the evaluation matrix with 484 votes in favor and one against, with an evaluation commission to send question sets in February, final bid concepts due June 4, 2026, and the national choice set for September 26, 2026 in Baden‑Baden.
- North Rhine‑Westphalia scheduled 17 municipal referendums for April 19, 2026, plans to cover 85% of costs with €9.5 million budgeted, and published estimates including Cologne at about €2.492 million for a mail‑in vote and Essen at about €1.2 million, with turnout quorums applying.
- Hamburg plans a May 31 referendum, Munich already recorded 66.4% approval in October, and Berlin cannot hold a vote under its constitution, a factor that scores lower in the matrix as local opposition groups mobilize.
- DOSB president Thomas Weikert criticized the draft Spitzensportfördergesetz that would give a 4:1 political majority in a new elite sports agency, with the DOSB to file its formal response by December 10 and a cabinet draft expected after the February Winter Games.
- A DOSB‑commissioned Infratest Dimap poll found 74% national support for a Summer Games bid, while IOC honorary president Thomas Bach urged the organization to move forward.