Airbnb Becomes IOC Global Parter In Nine Year Deal

The International Olympic Committee (IOC) and Airbnb have announced an agreement to support the Olympic Movement through to 2028. The nine-year, five-Games partnership is designed to create a new standard for hosting.

In line with the Olympic Agenda 2020, the IOC’s strategic roadmap for the future, and Airbnb’s mission to promote sustainable travel, the agreement supports the sustainability objectives of the Olympic Movement. The agreement includes accommodation provisions that will reduce costs for Olympic Games organisers and stakeholders, minimise the need for construction of new accommodation infrastructure for the Olympic Games period, and generate direct revenue for local hosts and communities. Working together with the International Paralympic Committee (IPC), Airbnb will also promote accommodation that supports accessibility for people with disabilities or other accessibility needs.

The agreement has met with criticism from the Mayor of Paris who is concerned that that the short term rental company has contributed to the increased rents within Paris.  

The IOC and Airbnb will launch Airbnb Olympian Experiences to provide direct earning opportunities for athletes, underlining the IOC’s efforts to support athletes and put them at the heart of the Olympic Movement. To be launched in early 2020, this new category will bring Airbnb’s goal of providing economic empowerment through hosting to athletes across the globe – beyond the timeframe and geographical location of the Games. Promoting sport and physical activity, these experiences will include everything from the chance to train with an Olympian to exploring a city with an elite athlete. In the coming months, Airbnb and the IOC, through the IOC Athlete365 platform, will provide support and training to athletes interested in becoming a host on the Airbnb Experiences platform.

In addition, the IOC will make at least US$28 million worth of Airbnb accommodation available over the course of the partnership to athletes competing at the Olympic and Paralympic Games for competition and training related travel.

Airbnb will also support the IOC in continuing to address the challenges faced by refugees around the world. The IOC has a long-standing commitment to refugees, including cooperation with the UN Refugee Agency (UNHCR) since 1994, the creation of the IOC Refugee Olympic Team for the Olympic Games Rio 2016 and Tokyo 2020, and the creation of the Olympic Refuge Foundation in 2017. Airbnb has been supporting refugee initiatives since 2015 through its 'Open Homes” programme, which connects generous hosts with those in need of temporary accommodation, including refugees. To date, more than 35,000 people have been housed in times of need. Over the course of the partnership, the IOC and Airbnb will establish further programmes to provide long-term support to refugees.

Airbnb has previously supported the Olympic Games Rio 2016 and Olympic Winter Games PyeongChang 2018 as a domestic sponsor. A recent World Economic Forum study found that during the Olympic Games Rio 2016, the additional capacity provided to visitors to Rio through Airbnb’s platform was equivalent to 257 hotels, saving the city in terms of materials use and carbon emissions, while also providing approximately USD 30 million in direct revenue for hosts and generating an estimated total economic activity of USD 100 million in three weeks. Similarly, during the Olympic and Paralympic Winter Games PyeongChang 2018, Airbnb hosts earned a collective US$2.3 million in income providing accommodation to 15,000 visitors who would have required 46 hotels. And most recently, in Japan, Airbnb hosts across the country welcomed more than 650,000 travellers during the Rugby World Cup period, earning more than US$70 million in host income.

Airbnb becomes the Worldwide Olympic Partner in the exclusive category of 'Unique Accommodation Products and Unique Experiences Services'. As a global Partner, Airbnb will support the Olympic Games Tokyo 2020, the Olympic Winter Games Beijing 2022, the Olympic Games Paris 2024, the Olympic Winter Games Milano Cortina 2026 and the Olympic Games Los Angeles 2028.

The agreement also includes marketing rights for the IPC and the Paralympic Games through the IOC-IPC long-term collaboration agreement, as well as for the Youth Olympic Games.