Brisbane River firms as potential 2032 Olympics opening ceremony location after Paris 2024
Just hours after the Paris 2024 Olympic opening ceremony concluded, attention turned to the Brisbane River and its suitability. VOTE IN OUR POLL
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With the Paris 2024 Olympic opening ceremony leaving a damp impression along the Seine, a debate has ignited in Brisbane over the location for the 2032 Games’ grand opening ceremony.
Paris bucked tradition by hosting its opening ceremony on and along the Seine River, instead of inside a stadium.
The ceremony used the river and the iconic infrastructure surrounding it, including the Eiffel Tower, as part of the spectacle.
As the world’s top athletes paraded down the river to the cheers of 300,000 spectators, Brisbanites are contemplating if a riverfront spectacle might be the answer to their own logistic hurdles.
Police Minister Mark Ryan teased his support for holding the 2032 Olympic and Paralympic opening ceremony along the Brisbane River.
“Well, we are known as the river city,” he said.
“I think that having the spotlight on Queensland and Brisbane will show the world how great the place we call home is, so having events which showcase all the great things about Queensland I think is a good thing.”
The LNP weren’t as convinced by the idea, with Tim Nicholls MP saying opening ceremony decisions should be left to the experts.
“I mean, the Brisbane River is a great river,” he said.
“We don’t need to wait till 2030 to enjoy the beauty and benefits.”
Paris’ unconventional and soggy river ceremony drew a mixed bag of reactions, spotlighting Brisbane’s dilemma: Queensland’s Suncorp Stadium, the largest viable venue, seats only 52,500 — significantly fewer than the crowds that typically grace Olympic opening ceremonies.
This figure pales in comparison to the Olympics’ opening ceremony held on Aussie soil, which saw over 112,000 spectators at Sydeny’s Accor Stadium.
Even after reconfiguration in 2003, Accor Stadium still holds 83,500 people, far surpassing Suncorp’s capacity.
The gap is glaring when considering other recent Olympics.
Athens in 2004 welcomed 72,000 attendees, Beijing’s Bird’s Nest Stadium held 90,000 in 2008, and London’s 2012 ceremony saw 80,000 spectators.
Looking ahead to the next Olympics, Los Angeles is set to host the 2028 opening ceremony at the city’s iconic SoFi Stadium, which seats 70,240 people, 17,740 more than Suncorp Stadium.
Hosting the ceremony at Suncorp Stadium would make it the smallest opening in over 40 years, excluding Tokyo 2020, which had no spectators due to the pandemic.
The Queensland government has already ruled out building a new stadium or rebuilding the Gabba for the 2032 Games.
Instead, they announced earlier this year that they are considering upgrades to QSAC at Nathan, which would only hold 40,000 spectators — an even smaller venue than Suncorp.
Brisbane’s original Olympic bid also promised a statewide event, with co-host cities including the Gold Coast, Sunshine Coast, Scenic Rim, Redland Bay, Moreton Bay, Ipswich, Cairns, and Townsville.
The official Olympics website still lists multiple regions as co-hosts, including Sydney and Melbourne.
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