World Military Games Usher N.C. to the Global Stage

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In the not-too-distant future, elite athletes from more than 100 countries will descend on the United States for two weeks of fierce competition across dozens of sports. The event will bring international attention and prestige to the host city, not to mention high-volume sales for hoteliers and restaurateurs.

But the competition we’re talking about isn’t in Los Angeles. It’s in Charlotte.

In 2027, the United States will host the Military World Summer Games for the first time. Organizers expect 8,000 military athletes from around the world. Charlotte is the host city, but athletes will compete at 20 locations across North and South Carolina in traditional, Olympic-style sports like fencing, judo, and beach volleyball, as well as military-specific events like drone racing and lifesaving.

“The motto of the International Military Sports Federation is ‘Friendship through sports,’” Eli Bremer, co-chair for the Charlotte games, told WSOC. “So you’re going to see Iranians, Chinese, Russians, Americans, French, everybody competing together.”

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Rome hosted the first Military World Summer Games in 1995, timed to coincide with the 50th anniversary of the end of World War II and the ratification of the United Nations Charter. The organizing body, the International Military Sports Council – known by its French acronym CISM – traces its roots back even further. CISM was founded in 1948, but its legacy reaches to 1919, when Allied military leaders “organized the Inter-Allied Games following World War I to promote peace and friendship through sport,” the Charlotte-based U.S. Performance Center recounts.

The Charlotte games will be the first since 2019 (which were notably held in Wuhan, China), as the 2023 games didn’t happen because of the pandemic. Charlotte’s bid was years in the making. The local push, led by U.S. Performance Center co-founders David Koerner and Ike Belk, showcased Charlotte’s growth and extensive sports infrastructure. 

“Hosting these Games in the Carolinas shines a global spotlight on the city’s growing reputation as an international hub for tourism, hospitality, and athletic excellence,” Koerner said.

At the federal level, Sen. Ted Budd began pressing the Department of Defense for its sign-off two years ago. He, along with a majority of the state’s congressional delegation, first asked then-Secretary of Defense Lloyd Austin to initiate the bid process (as required by the CISM) in April 2024. 

“North Carolina is strategically suited to host the WMG with our plentiful sporting venues, colleges, and transportation infrastructure,” Budd and the delegation wrote. “While it will require work to put on an event of this stature, North Carolina is well prepared and willing to prepare to execute a highly sophisticated and memorable experience.”

The CISM Board of Directors made the call in March 2025, choosing Charlotte over South Africa.

CISM cited the city’s outstanding sports infrastructure, its experience in hosting international sporting events, and its strategic position as a leading hub for sports tourism. That’s the official answer. The fuller answer is that Charlotte has spent years building the foundation for this kind of moment – professional sports franchises, world-class venues, a growing convention infrastructure, and an international airport with the connectivity to absorb a delegation from more than 100 nations.

About 20 venues across North and South Carolina will be used for the games, Axios reported. For North Carolina’s business community, the most relevant number is $3 billion. That’s the projected economic impact of hosting the Games, according to the Charlotte Observer. To put that in context: tourism, conventions, and events generated $1.1 billion in economic impact for Charlotte last year. The Games could triple that figure in just 10 days, though estimates like these often involve wide variability. 

The direct beneficiaries are obvious: hotels, restaurants, and really any business relevant to tourism. But the more durable benefit may be reputational. Events of this scale (assuming they’re well-managed) invite a certain prestige capital that can be drawn upon when pursuing future major events. And Charlotte businesses are taking note of the opportunity. Charlotte Pipe & Foundry, a 125-year-old manufacturer founded in the Queen City,  committed $1 million to the Games, becoming the global event’s first sponsor. 

When the sponsorship was announced, CEO Hooper Hardison said, “Supporting the men and women of our armed forces has long been part of our corporate DNA, and we are honored to play a role in welcoming the world’s military athletes to the Carolinas for the Military World Games.”

There is also a geopolitical dimension that’s relevant to North Carolina’s defense-adjacent business community. The Games are, at their core, a vehicle for military diplomacy. Organizers have adopted “Peace Through Sport” as their theme, reflecting a focus on legacy, diplomacy, and global connection. At a time when NATO allies are pledging to boost their defense spending, playing host to foreign military leaders in North Carolina seems alluring.

Over the past 25 years, North Carolina has hosted political conventions, major sporting events, and countless corporate relocations. Each has added a layer to the state’s national profile. 

The World Military Games will add yet another to our state’s growing global profile.