The chances of being awarded the Olympic Games the IOC are positively influenced by higher urban population, higher GDP growth, positive developments in political rights, a larger experience in organising world championships, more time passed since last hosting the Olympic Games, less time passed since hosting the FIFA World Cup, higher number of larger stadia, not having disputes with the IOC, and having a large popular support for hosting. We also summarize why cities decide to bid for Olympic Games. Beside the determinants that make success in bidding more likely, higher trade openness, improvements in political rights, stability of the government, improvement of the infant mortality rate and progress in social globalization are also associated with higher rates of bidding. However, countries with non-democratic regimes and long-term worsening political freedoms were also associated with higher bid likelihoods.