List of possible organizers Winter Olympic Games has declined dangerously in recent years. Publicity about budget overruns and humiliating referendum defeats have made cities reluctant to build sports facilities while changing of the climate reduced the number of candidate cities.

His city SapporoConversely, frozen northern japanseemed to have assembled all the necessary conditions for a successful Winter Games in 2030. Sapporo had already hosted the Games in 1972, it already had the most premises, willing residents and steady snowfall.

However, the city did not calculate the consequences of ongoing exposure of scandals from the Tokyo Olympics in 2021. The scandals turned public opinion against the prospect of a new event, even for the more limited Winter Games. The disgust of the Japanese public threatens even future events in the country. The revelations concerned major sporting goods companies and the organizing committee of the 2021 Games.

Cartel for contracts

The first arrests of suspects took place last summer, the detainees were charged with creating a cartel aimed at obtaining government contracts. The arrest of Dentsu’s top executives meant it was barred from hosting such events, especially in the city of Osaka, which was looking to Dentsu’s support for the 2025 World Expo.

In early March, Sapporo announced the exclusion of a number of businesses from the event, and the mayor of the city, Katsuhiro Akimoto, announced the termination of the city’s cooperation with Dentsu. While the city hopes to host the 2030 event, Akimoto admitted that without the help of the advertising giant, it will be very difficult to gather major sponsors. Dentsu controls 28% of advertising in Japan.

The aftermath of the Tokyo scandals affected the event, with the IOC finding that finding cities willing to participate had also become more difficult. At the 2022 Winter Olympics, the IOC was forced to choose between two authoritarian states (Kazakhstan and China) after all democratic candidate states withdrew.

In an effort to attract more candidate cities, the IOC lowered the bid fee. Despite all this, the turnout of interested parties remained sluggish. In recent polls published in the local press, 70% of Sapporo residents expressed their opposition to hosting the Games in their city.

“After the scandals, no one feels the need to see the Games in our city,” comments Masako Ishibashi, who attended the opening ceremony of the Games in Sapporo in 1972. Although the mayor refused to approve a referendum among residents, the municipal elections on April 9 will function as an informal referendum.

candidate for the future

Even if Sapporo’s 2030 bid fails, the city remains a potential contender for future events thanks to the municipality’s financially and environmentally sustainable initiatives. “However, they must first prove that they are able to nominate a serious candidate and conduct a proper organization. If they don’t, the Japanese Olympic movement will die out forever,” says Ryuichi Kasuga, a sports consultant who worked on the 1998 Nagano Winter Olympics.