Your Guide to the Milan 2026 Olympics Opening Ceremony

The Milan Cortina 2026 Winter Olympics will officially begin with an opening ceremony that features the likes of Mariah Carey and Sabrina Impacciatore.

The ceremony has been designed around the idea of armonia, or harmony, which organizers say represents both movement in sports and a sense of inclusion as athletes and spectators from around the world gather for the Games.

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Marco Balich, who is producing the opening ceremony, described the inspiration for the theme as a type of convergence: between the two host cities, “Milan and Cortina, city and mountain, the harmony between man and nature, between cultures, people and different ways of thinking.” The Dolomite ski resort of Cortina hosted the Winter Olympics in 1956.

“In this moment, where forces and bullies are predominant, I think it’s very important for all of us to embrace the values that the Olympics represents, which is to compete respectfully and peacefully between all the countries and nations, summarized in the title ‘Harmony,’’’ Balich told the Associated Press.

Here’s everything you need to know about the Milan 2026 Olympics Opening Ceremony.

When will the opening ceremony be held?

The ceremony will begin at 8 p.m. (2 p.m. E.T.) on Feb. 6, 2026, in Milan and is set to last around two to three hours. The ceremony coincides with the arrival of the Olympic torch relay and the formal gathering of athletes from around the world.

A few competitions will already have taken place. The Winter Games begin on Feb. 4 and Feb. 5 with preliminary matches and qualifying races in curling, women’s ice hockey, and men’s snowboarding. The first day of figure skating also takes place on Feb. 6 before the opening ceremony.

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Where will the opening ceremony take place?

The ceremony will be held at San Siro Stadium in Milan. But other ceremonies will be taking place in other cities at the same time, with the lighting and extinguishing of two Olympic cauldrons for the first time. One will be in Milan at the Arco della Pace and the other at the Piazza Dibona in the historic mountainous town of Cortina d’Ampezzo.

“For the first time, the name of our Games includes two cities, which means we have to hold the most significant moments twice: the flag-raising ceremony and the lighting of the Olympic cauldron will take place in two locations, and we have to manage this visibility,” said Andrea Varnier, the CEO of the organizing committee.

There will also be simultaneous celebrations and athlete parades in other places across Italy that are hosting Olympic events, including Livigno in Valtellina, which hosts snowboarding and freestyle events, and Predazzo in Val di Fiemme, which is home to skiing competitions.

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Who will produce, participate in, and perform at the opening ceremony?

Carey is slated to perform at the opening ceremony in San Siro Stadium. The organizing committee said in a statement that the artist known for hits such as “We Belong Together” “fully represents the emotional atmosphere that accompanies the run-up to the Games. Music is a universal language that attracts different stories and sensibilities, and intertwines with the opening ceremony’s theme of harmony.”

She will be joined by Impacciatore, who is known for her roles in HBO’s The White Lotus (2022) and NBC Peacock’s The Paper (2025). Other performers include crossover tenor Andrea Bocelli, actor Pierfrancesco Favino, singer Laura Pausini, actress Matilda De Angelis, and violinist Giovanni Zanon.

The ceremony will also include a special tribute to late fashion designer Giorgio Armani.

American rapper Snoop Dogg will again be a part of NBC’s Olympics broadcast coverage after he became a viral sensation as a roving correspondent during the 2024 Paris Summer Olympics. He was also named an honorary coach for Team USA.

The ceremony is being produced by Balich Wonder Studio. Balich has been involved in producing a record 16 Olympic and Paralympic ceremonies, from Turin in 2006 to Rio in 2016, as well as the 2022 FIFA World Cup opening in Qatar.

How can you watch the opening ceremony?

Tickets for the ceremony are available on the official website.

Broadcasters around the world will also air or stream the event. In the U.S., NBC will air the opening ceremony at 2 p.m. E.T. and 8 p.m. E.T., with on-demand streaming available on Peacock.