Your 2026 Sports Journey Bucket Record, From Milan to Mexico

Sports journey presents a solution to expertise a spot at its most speedy and alive. It’s additionally one of many fastest-growing segments of worldwide tourism—a brand new Expedia report estimates sports-related journey now accounts for roughly 10% of worldwide tourism spending, with the market projected to exceed $1.7 trillion globally throughout the subsequent decade. Major occasions more and more encourage journeys not only for attendance, however for the ambiance they create—setting the rhythm of complete cities as they arrive via.

In 2026, that pull stretches throughout the globe, from the purple clay courts of Paris and the manicured lawns of London to metropolis streets remodeled by marathons, alpine roads lined with cyclists, and waves that outline the world’s most iconic surf breaks. These sports activities occasions briefly reshape their environment as inns swell, public areas pulse with power, and native traditions transfer to the forefront. Some competitions carry centuries of historical past; others mirror the evolving scale and spectacle of worldwide sport.

You don’t have to like sports activities to like touring for them. Trust me—I’ve by no means been athletic, nor have I cared a lot for stats or scores, however one thing shifts if you’re in a metropolis—new or recognized—throughout a giant recreation. The streets come alive, the excitement is palpable, and for a second, everybody’s on the identical group. (Or united in opposition to a typical adversary—which is all the time enjoyable, too.) For vacationers, sports activities present each focus and context—a possibility to witness new or revisited cities and landscapes via the lens of efficiency, ardour, and celebration. Whether a single championship anchors a journey or frames a bigger itinerary, learn on for a month-by-month calendar, highlighting the place sport, place, and timing will intersect most memorably in 2026.

**Editor’s be aware: We will likely be updating this checklist via the 12 months as host cities and extra data releases. **

Overlooking Melbourne Park, residence of the Australian Open. The match is the richest Grand Slam Tennis match in historical past, the place the world’s prime tennis gamers compete for the prize as Australian Grand Slam Champion.

Getty

January 2026

Australian Open

When: January 18–31
Where: Melbourne, Australia

The Australian Open kicks off this 12 months’s tennis calendar with sun-splashed courts, heart-racing rallies, and a worldwide subject of elite opponents vying for the season’s first Grand Slam. Melbourne’s unmistakable power—from its famed café tradition to its vibrant laneways and cutting-edge galleries—is woven into the occasion, making town as a lot a protagonist as the game itself. For vacationers, it is a probability to mix world-class competitors with one in every of Australia’s most livable cities.

When: January 19
Where: Hard Rock Stadium in Miami Gardens, Florida

The coronation recreation of the college football season, this championship attracts followers from throughout the United States for one electrifying night time of sport and spectacle. It’s a cultural second as a lot as a contest—from pre-game tailgates to observe events throughout Miami’s nightlife districts. Whether you bleed your faculty’s colours or simply love nice American pageantry, this recreation is a vacation spot occasion.

AccordionItemContainerButton

Where to remain for the CFP National Championship:

AccordionItemContainerButton

2026 Winter X Games

When: January 21–24
Where: Aspen, Colorado, US