The 2026 Winter Olympics are being held in Milan, Italy, and there are many different sports being played, like hockey, curling, luge, skiing, etc. Famous celebrities have walked with the torch and even lit it up, including AC Milan head coach Massimiliano Allegri, Snoop Dogg, and Inter Milan head coach Cristian Chivu. The event is taking place from February 6 to February 22.
The Olympics and Italy don’t have a long history with one another, as seen by the few times Italy has hosted. It has only been three times: in 1956, when it was held in Cortina; in 2006 in Turin; and now in 2026, where it is taking place in both Milan and Cortina.
The opening ceremony took place at San Siro, the iconic Italian stadium where both AC Milan and Inter Milan play. For the opening night ceremony, Inter Milan had to move their Coppa Italia match vs. Torino to the U-Power Stadium (the home stadium of AC Monza) to make way for the event. AC Milan also had to reschedule a Serie A match vs. Como that was originally set for February 8 to February 18 for the same reason.
The Olympics are also being held in Cortina and at the Verona Stadium for the closing ceremony. The events are spread across different locations because, depending on the type of event, there might be more or less space required. Spreading events across different places also helps appeal to foreigners who are trying to see new things and helps boost revenue for each event.
According to Milan resident Antonio Locatelli, “I don’t really like that the Olympics are taking place in Milan because it’s moving priorities around, and I don’t have an interest in the Olympics to begin with.” He also expressed his dislike of the Games being held in two different locations, saying that if you’re going to host it, keep it in one place and leave it at that instead of branching out to another location.
His mother, Assunta Locatelli, felt quite the opposite and wasn’t against it, stating that “It’s refreshing to have such a big competition as the Olympics take place in the city or place that one lives in.” She also said she enjoys learning about and watching different sports like curling, luge, and hockey because instead of only focusing on soccer, Italians can learn new things about other sports and cultures and see what others are passionate about.
There have also been controversies surrounding the Milan Olympics, with Italians protesting and calling for ICE to leave the country and go back to where they came from. An 18-year-old named Bruna Scanziani held up images of Renee Macklin Good and Alex Pretti, who were both reportedly murdered by ICE, and she stated, “All the videos are public and everyone can see what’s happening.”
