Airbnb has signed a sponsorship deal reportedly worth $500 million with the International Olympic Committee (IOC).
IOC president Thomas Bach said Airbnb would commit to providing “guaranteed” accommodation over the next nine years in the host countries of upcoming Olympic events—Tokyo 2020, Beijing 2022, Paris 2024, Milan 2026, Los Angeles 2028.
„It’s never been done at the Olympics before,” said Airbnb cofounder and CPO Joe Gebbia.
The sponsorship will see Airbnb joining IOC partners Coca Cola, Alibaba, Atos, Bridgestone, Dow, GE, Intel, Omega, Panasonic, P&G, Samsung, Toyota and Visa.
Chesky discussed the larger role the hosting platform could play at the Olympics.
“Hundreds of thousands of people, if not more, are going to come to Tokyo. They don’t have enough hotels to house everyone,” he said, adding they could offer alternative accommodation.
