The 2024 Olympics take place in Paris, 26 July-11 August, with the Paralympics following on 30 August-8 September. As Paris is only one hour ahead of the UK, the events are scheduled at a decent hour for us Londoners, with many venues in the capital broadcasting the latest action on large screens throughout the competition.
Here's the full Olympics schedule and full Paralympics schedule to help you plan your viewing (and of course, your snack breaks).
Many of the places listed below will likely be screening Wimbledon and the Euro football tournament too — it'll be an eventful summer for sports fans. London's best sports bars are also an excellent bet for keeping up with all the action.
Official Fan Zones at King's Cross, Mayfair and BPS: 26 July-11 August
Team GB has announced the opening of several official "Fan Zones", which will screen loads of the action and will be free to enter. Just turn up, any day between the Olympic Opening Ceremony and Closing Ceremony, and you can watch the action on a big screen. (At time of writing, there is no indication the Zones will be retained for the Paralympics.)
In-between the action, you can "enjoy live DJ sets, the chance to try their hand at Olympic-themed activities, and a programme of onstage entertainment, including Q&As and medal celebrations with Team GB’s returning athletes".
The zones will appear in cities across the country, with three in London: Lewis Cubitt Square in King's Cross, Grosvenor Square in Mayfair, and Battersea Power Station.
Olympics and Paralympics screenings at Bishops Square, Spitalfields: 26 July-11 August and 28 August-8 September
Large screens will be erected on Bishops Square in Spitalfields (just off Brushfield Street) showing the Olympics and Paralympics, with free deckchairs available. Plenty of restaurants, cafes and street food stalls nearby will be doing takeaways.
Olympics screenings at Hammersmith Summer Festival
The big screen is back in Lyric Square Hammersmith, but this year it sticks around after Wimbledon to screen the Olympics. It's free to watch, with deckchairs provided on a first come first served basis.
Lower Marsh, Waterloo: 6 August
As part of the Lower Marsh Summer of Sports, the large screen on the Waterloo thoroughfare focuses its attention on the Paris Olympics on Tuesday 6 August, when several of the big Athletics events take place, including the Men's 400m Semi-Final, the Men's 1500m Final and the Women's 200m Final.
Olympics at Summer in the Square, Marylebone: 7-11 August
Marylebone’s free outdoor event Summer in the Square is back for its 10th year. As always, there's a large screen for showing Wimbledon, but this year it's also dabbling in the Olympics for the first time too, at a special Games in the Garden event.
Head to Portman Square Gardens to bag yourself a free deckchair. The Guest Kitchen is a pop-up food space where you can get refreshments from a rotating selection of local restaurants and street food stalls, to enjoy as you watch. It's a family-friendly space, with games and other activities alongside the screenings.
Olympics at Summer Screens in Canary Wharf
The annual (free!) Summer Screens pop-up in Canary Wharf always screens Wimbledon, a selection of films, and other major sporting events. For summer 2024, that includes the Paris Olympics and Paralympics. Take along a picnic blanket, stock up on snacks, and bag yourself a free spot to watch the action. Keep an eye on the website for details of which events are being shown.
Watch the Olympics at Summer by the River
Free outdoor festival Summer by the River is showing the Olympics for free on a large screen at The Scoop (the sunken area with steps for sitting on). Full details of screenings are TBC, but there are pop-up bars and street food stalls dotted around the festival to keep you fed and watered while you watch those feats of athletic strength.
