Citizens’ Charter for the Olympics
On 21 April 2026, representatives of Berlin’s civil society presented the “Citizens’ Charter for the Olympics” to the Senate. The Citizens’ Charter is the result of a broad participatory process relating to Berlin’s bid to host the Olympic and Paralympic Games. A Citizens’ Forum selected at random, as well as a youth forum also put together by random selection, were part of the process.
The Citizens’ Charter brings together the expectations and ideas of the city’s community into concrete recommendations for a potential hosting of the Summer Games. According to the Senate, the process reflected a complex range of sentiments: alongside the opportunity to present Berlin internationally as a cosmopolitan, diverse and forward-looking metropolis, reservations were also expressed – for instance regarding traffic congestion, disruption to daily life, and issues of funding, transparency and international sporting structures.
Ten recommendations for action
The ten recommendations for action include, amongst other things, strengthening voluntary work and club sports, local sports and exercise facilities, sustainable and accessible mobility, affordable housing, climate-resilient urban development, the involvement of the local economy, a city-wide cultural programme, and the active participation of young people.
The work of the Citizens’ and Youth Forum incorporated around 1,200 pieces of feedback and suggestions from a neighbourhood tour. In February 2026, members of the steering group for the Olympic bid had engaged in discussions with Berliners, answered questions and taken on board suggestions for a potential Olympic bid. The aim was to directly incorporate ideas, opinions and concerns from the city’s community.
Topics of the neighbourhood tour
The main topics raised by residents during the neighbourhood tour were primarily the situation surrounding sports facilities, the promotion of grassroots sport, and potential improvements to infrastructure and mobility in the city.
A city-wide online participation process ran in parallel to the neighbourhood tour. At www.mein.berlin.de, Berliners were able to contribute their ideas, expectations and feedback. The platform provided a space for comments, suggestions and discussions, and made key information about the bid available.
In addition to the neighbourhood tour, online participation and the Citizens’ and Youth Forum, the participation process also included workshops with representatives from the social, sport, cultural, economic, nature and environmental protection sectors, as well as tourism. These also took place in February.
Citizens’ and Youth Forum randomly selected
For the Citizens’ Forum, 5,000 Berliners were selected by lottery and invited, whilst for the Youth Forum, 1,000 young people aged between 15 and 21 from the capital were selected and invited. 238 of those invited applied to take part in the Citizens’ Forum and 59 young people applied to take part in the Youth Forum. From these interested parties, groups of 50 people (Citizens’ Forum) and 20 people (Youth Forum) were then selected by means of a stratified random draw, ensuring that the groups represented the population as accurately as possible in terms of age, gender, education and place of residence.
Between 14 and 28 March 2026, the members of the Citizens’ Forum, together with stakeholders from the wider community and the online engagement platform, drew up the “Citizens’ Charter for the Olympics”.
Charter content incorporated into Olympic bid concept
On 20 March 2026, participants in the Youth Forum spent four hours discussing their ideas for the Olympic and Paralympic Games in Berlin. Their recommendations for sustainable, inclusive and forward-looking Games were incorporated into the “Citizens’ Charter for the Olympics”.
The contents of the Charter will be incorporated into the city’s Olympic bid concept. The bid will be submitted to the German Olympic Sports Confederation on 4 June 2026. On 26 September 2026, the Confederation’s General Assembly will decide on the German host city for the 2026, 2040 or 2044 Games. Alongside Berlin, Munich, Hamburg and the Rhine-Ruhr region, including Cologne, are vying to be selected.
Final Forum
Following the submission of the application in early June 2026, the subsequent Final Forum will provide a space for presentation, reflection and the joint celebration of the results from all engagement formats. It will foster further dialogue, networking and the implementation of the recommendations – even beyond the application process.