By Katherine Zehnder
Carolina Journal
North Carolina’s Research Triangle is set to host the FISU World University Games summer edition in 2029. North Carolina was initially set to be the host nation for the 2027 games; however, South Korea will now host in 2027, and North Carolina will host in 2029.
“The award of the 2029 FISU World University Games to our state and country is the culmination of an extensive 5-year effort by more than 1,000 individuals, 13 universities, 5 cities, 5 counties, the State of North Carolina, and 53 corporate and organizational sponsors to land this amazing event,” said Hill Carrow, Chairman and CEO of the North Carolina Bid Committee in a press release. As an event that features the best collegiate athletes from around the world, it is a natural fit for a state with 130 colleges and universities and more than 350,000 university students.”
The FISU World University Games is second in size only to the Olympic Games and is the largest event for student-athletes on the planet, on the scale of a global Olympic multi-sport competition. The only other time the United States hosted the Summer Games was in 1993 in Buffalo, NY.
“North Carolina’s landing these Games is similar to a major corporate relocation as the FISU Games will deliver a local economic impact of over $150 million, but with the added benefits of significant international tourism and worldwide branding exposure for our state and local communities,” continued Carrow. “We thank FISU for selecting North Carolina USA as the Official Host of the 2029 FISU World University Games, and we look forward to partnering with the FISU Family to deliver a most successful 2029 Games!”
A special reserve fund was created by the state legislature in 2023 to allocate funding for the event. So far, the NC Department of Commerce has also allocated $25 million.
In January of 2023, the FISU executive committee announced that North Carolina was the pick to host the 2029 Summer Games. The announcement came just before the 2023 games in Lake Placid region, the first time in 51 years the United States has hosted the games. Lake Placid was previously the host of the Winter Games in 1972.
The process for hosting the FISU World University Games begins with a call for host candidates.
“Prospective National University Sports Federations are required to provide a bidding dossier that is accessed by the FISU Executive Committee,” according to the website. “After deliberation, a World University Championship event is attributed to the chosen FISU Member Association and city.”
A delegation of North Carolina leaders and dignitaries went to Lake Placid, in Jan 2023 to attend the FISU executive committee meeting and signing ceremony. The delegation included Elaine Marshall, North Carolina Secretary of State; Brenda Howerton, Chairman of the Durham County Board of Commissioners; Brian Ralph, President of William Peace University; Richard Beard, President & CEO of the Greensboro Sports Foundation; and Dragomir Cioroslan, Director of International Strategies and Development at the United States Olympic & Paralympic Committee.
“I am so glad to showcase North Carolina on this world stage,” Ralph said in a press release. “The opportunity for student-athletes from around the world to experience some of the amazing colleges and universities of North Carolina is truly extraordinary. I am confident that state leaders will build out an incredible event and that the fans of college athletics in North Carolina and beyond will provide a warm welcome to competitors from near and far.”
The delegation visited Belgium in November 2022 to bring the 2027 games to NC. While South Korea won the 2027 bid, FISU awarded NC the 2029 Games.
“This is a very proud moment in our State’s history, said Marshall. “The FISU World University Games will be the largest event ever hosted in our state, and it will give us the unique opportunity to not only host athletes and fans from more than 150 countries, but to showcase North Carolina, including our renowned universities and all that our great State has to offer, to a worldwide audience of more than 400 million!”
North Carolina and South Korea were the two runners-up during the 2027 Games bidding process. The committee ultimately chose Chungcheong province to host the 2027 Games. Despite North Carolina’s loss of the 2027 bid, the federation awarded the Triangle the 2029 Games two months later.
“We were very impressed with what North Carolina has to offer for the FISU World University Games from our site visits, their candidature dossiers, and the presentation to our Executive Committee in conjunction with their original bid for 2027,” said FISU President Leonz Eder in a press release.
According to an AP report, in September 2022, a federal panel visited Gov. Roy Cooper and North Carolina while deciding the 2027 Games.
“Even though North Carolina did not win the 2027 FISU Games last fall, we have worked diligently with our membership and staff since that time on the best way to secure North Carolina USA as a future host of the FISU Games,” said Eder. “Fortunately, with our leadership gathered in Lake Placid for the Winter Games, the timing has been very appropriate and opportune to approve North Carolina USA as the Host City of the 2029 FISU World University Games.”
Russia was set to host the Summer Games in 2023 but was canceled due to the Russian invasion of Ukraine. The Winter Games were also canceled in 2021 due to the pandemic when Switzerland was set to host.
How To Watch
While network deals have yet to be established for the 2029 games, deals will likely be made as the 2029 championship draws closer. On April 18, FISU announced that they secured live coverage on Eurosport for their 2025 Winter and Summer Games. The 2025 Summer Games will be held in Rhine-Ruhr, Germany, and the Winter Games will be held in Torino, a region in Italy.
“FISU shall have the exclusive right to broadcast the FISU Championship outside of the Host Country and to retain all revenues they’re from,” according to the bidding guidelines.
The organizing committee holds the exclusive rights to broadcast the championship in the host country only via cable television and over the air. The committee also has the right to retain all revenue from the broadcast.
“The Host City Partners shall not enter any contract pertaining to the broadcast of the FISU Championship or related programming without the prior written consent of FISU, which consent will not be unreasonable,” according to the guidelines.
FISU has its own streaming service for annual championships, available on most device operating systems and platforms. The service allows its users to livestream and stream the FISU games.
