Helsinki was named as the host of the 2030 European Athletics Championships on Thursday, a record fourth time the city has been chosen to showcase the event.
A date for the championship has not been finalized, but the biennial competition will follow Chorzów, Poland in June 2028 in staging Europe’s major track and field contest.
“We are delighted to award the 2030 European Athletics Championships to Helsinki, a city with an outstanding place in the history of our sport,” European Athletics President Dobromir Karamarinov said. “This will be the fourth time Helsinki has hosted the championships, more than any other city in the near 100-year history of the event. This is a testament to Finland’s enduring passion and connection with athletics.”
The Finnish capital previously held the championships in 1971, 1994 and 2012 and continues a deep history of global events that also includes the 1952 Summer Olympics in addition to the 1983 and 2005 World Athletics Championships, becoming the first city to host the championships twice.
Competition will take place over the course of a week at Helsinki Olympic Stadium and the decision comes after a three-year submission process where the city ultimately beat Brussels after a vote from a 17-member panel at the 181st European Athletics Council Meeting in Lausanne, Switzerland on Thursday.
“Finnish athletics fans are among the most passionate and knowledgeable in Europe and the consistently exceptionally strong television audiences for the European Athletics Championships in Finland demonstrates just how deeply our sport resonates with the Finnish public,” European Athletics CEO Christian Milz said.
As attendance and interest in the sport continues to soar, Helsinki will likely benefit from a busy lead into 2030, with the 2027 world championships in Beijing, 2028 European championships in Chorzów, the 2028 Los Angeles Olympics and 2029 world championships in Nairobi all among the major events set to push track and field into an unprecedented staged — and packed calendar.
Meanwhile, this year’s European championships fielded more than 218,000 spectators over seven days in Birmingham, England’s Alexander Stadium, saw two world records, 40 national records and a record 1,645 athletes competing across 50 events for 157 medals.
“This was a fantastic conclusion to a three-year bid project and the starting gun for the operational work to create a memorable event at the Helsinki Olympic Stadium for both athletes and spectators,” Riikka Pakarinen, president of the Finnish Athletics Federation said. “A huge thank you to the City of Helsinki, the Finnish Government and the dozens of other partners and supporters behind this project. Hopefully this will also encourage other Finnish sports to bid for major international events in Finland.”
Olympic Stadium, which is owned and managed by The Stadium Foundation, underwent an extensive renovation in 2016 to create a new underground facility, gaining a canopy over the stands along with restoration of iconic exterior details and reopened in 2020.
