For the first time, the Olympic Opening Ceremony will take place outside a stadium, bringing the spectacle directly to the public. In an effort to make this extraordinary event accessible to all, the City of Paris will distribute 55,000 tickets, targeting families in underprivileged neighbourhoods.
Like the Games themselves, the Opening Ceremony on 26 July will be a huge popular celebration. Thanks to an initiative by the host city, thousands of people will have the chance to attend this unique event, with Paris giving away 55,000 free tickets. That is almost enough to fill the Stade de France.
The tickets are aimed primarily at families from disadvantaged neighbourhoods – those with the lowest family quotient, whose children don’t usually go on holiday and who are enrolled in summer leisure centres. These tickets are also a way of thanking Parisians who are actively involved in the community, such as young people doing their community service, members of the sports movement (including those from welcoming clubs), employees of the City of Paris and various committed actors such as the volunteers of Nuit de la Solidarité.
The lucky winners will be notified by email and will be able to choose three companions. Those who respond will receive access codes to connect to the Paris 2024 platform. Three waves of invitations will be sent out between June and July to avoid any cancellations.
The spectator capacity for the River Parade, which will mark the opening of the Games, has been set at 326,000, with 222,000 on the upper banks and 104,000 on the lower banks. Spectators will be divided into 15 dedicated zones on the upper banks, with each zone holding between 600 and 40,000 spectators. In total, an estimated 1.5 billion people around the world will be watching. On 26 July, one in five people around the world will have their eyes on Paris.
Key Figures:
1,137. The number of toilets along the ceremonial route, plus 800 water points.
400. the number of waste bins distributed along the route.
2,000. the number of volunteers available to guide spectators and provide information.
1,000: The number of municipal police officers deployed to secure the Opening Ceremony.