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Winter Olympics Opening Ceremony (LIVE): Our Preview/Viewing Guide

Here's our 2026 Winter Olympics Open Ceremony viewing guide, including when and where to watch live this afternoon and a whole lot more!

NBCUniversal officially kicks off its in-depth and comprehensive coverage of the Winter Olympics with the 2026 Winter Olympics Opening Ceremony. With San Siro Stadium in Milan serving as the hot spot for what will truly be a global celebration of the best and brightest athletes that the world has to offer, we have a look at what you need to know to take part in the festivities. Our 2026 Winter Olympics Opening Ceremony preview/viewing guide offers a rundown of when and where to check out the live ceremony and the primetime encore; the lineup of reporters and commentators set to cover the big event; what viewers can expect during the ceremony; who's set to perform, and interesting additional facts. In addition, we've included some preview videos and featurettes that offer a more personal look at what's to come.

When & Where Can I Watch the 2026 Winter Olympics Opening Ceremony? Live Winter Olympics coverage runs from 12 p.m. ET to 2 p.m. ET. The main ceremony will be held at San Siro Stadium in Milan, with additional celebrations held in Cortina d'Ampezzo, including the lighting of the Olympic cauldron. As for when to watch, it depends on if you're looking to watch the ceremony live and complete or edited during primetime:

• Opening Ceremony (LIVE): NBC and Peacock will present live coverage beginning at 2 p.m. ET.
• Opening Ceremony (PRIMETIME): NBC and Peacock present an enhanced encore beginning at 8 p.m. ET/PT.
• Other streaming options to consider include DirecTV, Sling, and Hulu + Live TV.

Who's Covering the 2026 Winter Olympics Opening Ceremony? NBC has an impressive lineup of talent on tap tonight:

• Coverage will be hosted by NBC Olympic veteran Mary Carillo and NBC Sports commentator Terry Gannon and will feature three-time Olympic snowboarding gold medalist Shaun White in the broadcast booth when the athletes enter the stadium for the Parade of Athletes.
• Olympic primetime host Mike Tirico will also contribute to the Opening Ceremony coverage from Northern California, where he is also preparing to call Super Bowl LX on Sunday, Feb. 8, from Levi's Stadium in Santa Clara, Calif, on NBC and Peacock.

• NBCU will employ five reporters throughout the geographically expansive Opening Ceremony, with Snoop Dogg stationed in Cortina, where he will have a chance to speak with the athletes. In addition, Britney Eurton (Cortina), Lewis Johnson (Milan), Tina Dixon (Livigno), and Nicole Auerbach (Predazzo) will serve as on-site reporters.

• NBC Sports' Kathryn Tappen will report from the red carpet in Milan, providing viewers with insights on all things Milan Cortina Winter Olympics. Tappen, in her seventh NBC Olympic assignment, has served as NBC Sports' Big Ten Saturday Night sideline reporter since the program's debut in 2023.

Who's Set to Perform During the 2026 Winter Olympics Opening Ceremony? The Winter Olympics Opening Ceremony will feature performances from two of the most well-known and best-selling singers in the world: Grammy Award-winner Mariah Carey and Italian icon and tenor Andrea Bocelli. Additional performances from actress Sabrina Impacciatore (HBO's The White Lotus) and renowned pianist Lang Lang will also be part of the event.

What Else Can We Expect During the 2026 Winter Olympics Opening Ceremony? Expected to last approximately three hours, the opening ceremony will include several traditional elements such as the Parade of Nations (featuring athletes from all the competing countries), a lighting of the cauldrons in both Milan and Cortina, and the raising of the flags in both locations, accompanied by the singing of the Olympic Anthem (composed by Spýros Samáaras to words written by Kostís Palamás). In addition, Olympics officials say we can expect:

• Entrance of Italian President Sergio Mattarella and IOC President Kirsty Coventry
• Playing of Italy's national anthem
• The symbolic release of doves
• The Olympic Laurel Award, a relatively new feature of the Games, with its roots in ancient Greece
• Official Speeches by Mattarella and Coventry
• Athletes, judges, and coaches' oath
• The artistic program

What Are Some Highlights I Should Know About the 2026 Winter Olympics Opening Ceremony?

• "Harmony" (or "armonia" in Italian) is the theme of the Opening Ceremony for the Milano Cortina Olympic Games.
• The centerpiece for this year's Opening Ceremony will be Milan's iconic San Siro Stadium, which was built nearly 100 years ago and is home to world-renowned football clubs AC Milan and Inter Milan.
• Creative lead Marco Balich will have the Winter Olympics Opening Ceremony feature the lighting of two Olympic cauldrons for the first time ever: one in Milan at the iconic Arco della Pace, and one in Cortina d'Ampezzo at Piazza Dibona in the heart of the mountain town.
• Aside from San Siro Stadium, the Winter Olympic Opening Ceremony will feature live aspects from other Olympic regions in northern Italy. The Parade of Athletes will see Olympic athletes marching from four different locations: Milan, Livigno, Predazzo, and Cortina.
• This will be the second time the Olympics are held in Cortina (1956 Olympic Winter Games) and the fourth time overall that Italy has hosted an Olympic Games (1960 Rome Olympics and 2006 Olympic Winter Games in Torino, which is the last time there was a Winter Games in the Central European Time Zone).
• 2022 Beijing Olympic 500m speed skating gold medalist Erin Jackson and bobsledder Frank Del Duca will serve as Team USA flag bearers during the Opening Ceremony.

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