Comped

And by the time time a ME Olympics comes around, we'll have casinos in the UAE (and probably Dubai). Which certainly makes it a better choice than Qatar! The UAE is western enough that of any option in the Gulf (perhaps with the exception of Bahrain), it's the most palatable for the Olympic viewing public (and we wouldn't have to worry about the Israeli relations issue due to normalization). They'd have to improve their facilities, and the number of hotel rooms, but there is enough to do there to entertain people outside the Games, and the bones of a good public transport network as well.

It makes me hope that 2028 will see Disney get involved, because I know exactly how they would have done this ceremony in the old days. Less long boat parade probably.

Boxing has a chance given how American centric the sport has been for probably the last hundred years...

No break dancing? Happy about that, always thought it to be a nutty "sport". But Squash? Seriously?

Canada might have an opportunity - Hamilton maybe, or somewhere like Winnipeg... But it'd be very tight and likely require a lot of venue re-use, more-so than perhaps warranted if there was a longer lead-in. India is a possibility, but a remote one. Caribbean games are out for facilities reasons as well... If one (or all) of the former Trucial States were ever to join the Commonwealth, they'd be frontrunners to host. Sadly not an option!

Who hosts now? Canada?

Unlike Qatar, Morocco's system for buying beer is both long-standing and successful. You'll have no issues there unlike in Qatar because the King doesn't need to play to a religious base as much.

Honestly? Terrible idea - and no chance it would happen today. Too much money in the flag-based merch and coverage,

Canada is likely a favourite to balance out the Latin-American heavy schedule, especially as the US doesn't seem to want to host. Important consideration in my opinion.

When was the last time the US didn't make a World Cup for basketball?

Of those... Commonwealth Games and RWC are probably the most in scale with NZ. Olympics and WC are a hard no unless Aus co-hosts the latter.

Realistically, the likelihood of Calgary even bidding on 2034 just went up about 100-fold.

I honestly think the UK will pull it off. If only because of the possibility of the bad-PR factor from 1936, and the IOC not wanting that chance.

For me, my ranking is: UK: Safe option, even if you move it out of London. Almost too safe - but who knows? Likely by then we'll be either at the end of Charles' reign or already into Will and Kate's, but I think the Queen's spirit will probably loom strongly over the games, particularly if they're in London. Would be the obvious choice for me. Germany: Gets 2nd due to infrastructure, safety, and the ability and knowledge from previously hosting mega-events. Not my preferred choice, and I don't know if the IOC want it either - or the German people. If they don't... the bid is sunk. South Korea: Not the best choice, but certainly top 3-4. I personally think they should wait another decade after this (particularly to see if relations with the north warm, among other things), but they're not a terrible choice. Turkey: Better than most purely based on history and infrastructure. Human rights are a concern, but they're likely to be downplayed unless things change. If the IOC want a European-ish country that hasn't hosted before, they're the best choice. Egypt: Squeaks into the top 5 because its' an African country that's relatively developed. Relatively safe as well, and is a familiar destination for many. Qatar: I think the World Cup in a couple of weeks will sink them as an option for the Olympics. Especially because of their hotel room issue, and the huge issue with expected behavior from guests not matching their norms. But if they somehow did host, they could throw tons of money into it and make it work. Mexico: Safety is my biggest issue here. Followed by a lack of infrastructure suitable for the Olympics that doesn't need massive redevelopment or complete construction. India: No history of a similar sized event, and by the point the games will likely be awarded, the Commonwealth Games will have been over for nearly 20 years. While the heat is a concern, I'd argue politics is even more-so - and can they even afford the Olympics? I don't think so. Hungary: Politics is an issue here - especially with tension between Hungary and the rest of the EU. Also, I don't think they have the right infrastructure, and realistically don't have the money to build it. Indonesia: No real record of hosting major international events of a similar scale, and as you said, the bloody city isn't built yet.

Surprised Japan wouldn't bid to be honest, but Gangwon seems fairly popular for major international winter events at the moment, and can hopefully ride the wave of a successful Youth Winter Olympics in 2024, especially if they use the venues they plan on using there, which are apparently left over from when they actually hosted the Winter Olympics.

At this point, I wouldn't doubt if it's Qatar, just because we still don't know how badly (or well) the World Cup is going to go, and the ME holds quite a bit of power within the fed at the moment. South Korea would be my 2nd choice.

It does make it much more possible for the UK to host a future World Cup, if the Iberian-Ukrainian bid gets sunk due to Ukrainian involvement... Still baffles me England hasn't hosted since 1966.

No football and no men's cricket. I kinda get why not football (especially as England would kill it - except perhaps with women's, where at least Canada is in the top 10), but considering how the ICC had angled for the Commonwealth Games to be a T20 testing ground for future men's Olympic inclusion, it had to be a blow.

Frankly, the UK (or even just England) could easily be told they had to host on short notice. Teams and fans would be pissed, and although the UK is proving they know how to police one-in-a-lifetime events currently (and doing amazingly well at it), it's their hotel infrastructure that would be questionable (at least in London). As every sod in Europe supporting a European team would want to come over - not to mention far cheaper flights from NA. But their stadiums are, in my opinion, even better than the ones in Qatar, and they know how to run a game of football. Fairly sure if a list like the one the IOC keeps for emergency Olympics hosting existed for FIFA, the UK would be on top.

Way stricter than Qatar even on a good day. No way MBS, when he becomes King, will change that quickly. Yep. And unless MBS ascends to the throne quickly, and decides that he wants to piss off the religious leadership, no chance he decides to liberalize that quickly. They still barely have cinemas in the country - for decades (I think about 25 years) there was 1 IMax theatre and that was the only movie theatre in the country. If/when World Cup 2022 goes badly (if fans are pissed about beer restrictions, or any number of things, and cause bad PR), it will sink Saudi's participation. Saudi have the religious police still as well, which will be absolute hell to deal with when it comes to westerners.

No chance it gets seriously considered because of the winter timeframe. Just have Saudi build some domed stadiums there and in Egypt and have it in the normal timeframe.

Orlando almost made an emergency bid for the 2020 Olympics (I have the resulting half the bid book that I helped with creating before the IOC reaffirmed Japan's hosting somewhere). If a city their size, or someplace else, was interested in bidding, there's little that stands in many of their ways besides the USOC not wanting to bid.

Malaysia-Singapore joint bid could work. Or, as mentioned in the article, an East African games could prove attractive. Caribbean I doubt, due to infrastructure proving an issue. Pacific would be even worse. Why not Malta or Cyprus? Although, there are potential members that would make things interesting. If the Gulf countries ever decided to join the Commonwealth and bid for a Games, they'd get a CG easily. Same with Egypt...

At that point, well over a dozen different US cities, from Orlando to Vegas to Boston, even smaller cities like Omaha or Cincinnati, could probably be said to be appropriate sized/capable hosts. The USOC doesn't want to, but I bet there's a bunch of medium and smaller cities that would be interested because they're never going to get the Olympics anywhere close.

I wonder if this means that we might see a return to Canada or the US for a future PAG? If Latin American countries are finding it difficult to host... It would make sense.