Brisbane was awarded the 2032 Olympics under the dialogue process with the IOC ©Getty Images

A study from BCW Sports has found potential host cities prefer the dialogue process now adopted by the International Olympic Committee (IOC), over the traditional bidding process for sporting events.

Surveying 100 cities worldwide who are active in bidding and hosting these events, it found that 56 per cent were more in favour of dialogue, but also noted weaknesses in this process.

Some of these included a lack of clarity over the timeframe and decision-making, which are more concrete in a traditional format for bidding.

Only 31 per cent were more in favour with the bidding process, with 14 per cent having no preference.

That said, 53 per cent said they were only influenced somewhat by whether the process was bidding or dialogue, before deciding to submit interest.

A quarter said this was very important to them and would influence their decision, while 22 per cent said it would hardly influence them at all.

The opportunity to influence the rights holders' requirements and the process of learning and developing through discussions with rights holders were seen as the most positive reasons to favour the dialogue process, with 24 per cent saying it helped cost savings on bidding campaigns.

Milan Cortina was awarded the 2026 Winter Olympics under the traditional bidding process after a period of initial dialogue ©Getty Images
Milan Cortina was awarded the 2026 Winter Olympics under the traditional bidding process after a period of initial dialogue ©Getty Images

Cities were positive about the clear timeline and process, as well as the transparency in decision-making that is involved in the bidding process.

Although most cities said they never or rarely missed out on a bid due to not knowing the process, 14 said it had happened several times.

Complaints were made about "political motivated backroom deals" being common, as well as not knowing what stage of the dialogue process they should be at in comparison to other interested parties.

Almost two-thirds added that their city winning a competitive bidding process increased the support from the public to host the event too.

"Cities are the key stakeholder when it comes to the allocation of major international events, so we felt it was important to let them have their say in terms of which approach they prefer: bidding or dialogue," said BCW Sports managing director Lars Haue-Pedersen.

"We hope that this research will help rights holders to develop an optimal process, most likely a hybrid solution that provides clarity, consistency and transparency all of which will benefit them and the chosen host."

Brisbane is a notable future Olympic host that was given the 2032 Games after targeted dialogue with the IOC.