The deal will see Accor, the sixth biggest hotel group in the world, offer its services in the Olympic and Media Villages where, for the first time, a hospitality operator will oversee athlete and media accommodation facilities.

The expertise of Accor's people will enable the athletes and media representatives to enjoy the high quality of service provided by a world leading hotel group and therefore benefit from optimal services and facilities during the competition period, Paris 2024 claimed.

A booking platform for all accredited personnel attending Paris 2024 is set to be launched.

The platform, provided by ResaEvents, a subsidiary of the Accor group, will cover the whole French hotel market around Olympic and Paralympic venues "to make it easier to book hotel rooms and guarantee a seamless, efficient customer experience", Paris 2024 promised.

Accor operates over 1,600 hotels in France and has 20 brands ranging from luxury to low-cost.

They will be expected to provide a large number of the 47,000 hotel rooms that Paris 2024 has promised to the International Olympic Committee (IOC) will be made available during the Olympic Games.

Paris 2024 President Tony Estanguet and Sébastien Bazin, the chairman and chief executive of the Accor Group, announced the partnership at the Destination France Summit, which took place today in Paris and was attended by the French President Emmanuel Macron.

At the same Summit, Accor also announced that it had signed a partnership with the 2023 Rugby World Cup in France.  

"We share great many values with Paris 2024, including the importance of working together, uncompromisingly high standards, generosity and flying the flag for France on the world stage," Bazin said.

"Accor is proud to partner with the Olympic and Paralympic Games Paris 2024, when athletes and spectators from the world over will come to France to see what we have to offer.

"Our employees and teams are already pulling out all the stops to show the world what hospitality means in France and offer everyone an unforgettable experience and stay during the greatest sporting event on the planet. Paris is hosting the Games, and we will be ready to host the people who are making them happen."

Paris 2024 and the Rugby World Cup will join a strong portfolio of events and clubs that Accor already support in France, including the French Open tennis tournament and the Paris Saint-Germain football team,

"I am delighted to welcome Accor into the Paris 2024 family," said Estanguet.

"This partnership marks the culmination of our close collaboration with one of the world's leading hotel groups, right since the bidding phase.

"It reiterates our shared objective to offer all those involved in the Olympic and Paralympic Games - the athletes, officials and media - a service and experience that reflect our special take on welcoming in France when we host them for Paris 2024.

"Benefiting from optimal living conditions, they will be able to focus on what really counts - the show and their performance."

The IOC signed a deal in 2019 with Airbnb, the online marketplace that connects people who want to rent out their homes with people who are looking for accommodation.

But the deal has proved particularly controversial in France, where politicians have long battled to keep a check on Airbnb and its impact on the rental market in major cities.

In July, legislation was introduced which allows authorities in Paris and other French cities and towns to be able to regulate local businesses who wish to rent property on Airbnb.

The news was welcomed by authorities in Paris, which has been witnessing "the multiplication of ground floor business premises being transformed into holiday rentals," said the city’s Deputy Mayor Ian Brossat, who is in charge of housing.

In recent years, Paris city authorities have made tax registration obligatory for apartment owners and have restricted those renting out their primary residence to a maximum of 120 days a year.

Now if owners want to rent a furnished property for less than a year to holidaymakers, they must apply to local authorities for permission to change the registered use of the space.