Dominican Republic’s president vows history-making Central American and Caribbean Games 2026

Santo Domingo.- President Luis Abinader pledged that the Dominican Republic will make history through its hosting of the 25th Central American and Caribbean Games in 2026, in what is being billed as the largest edition ever of the regional multi-sport event.

The head of state revealed that the games will bring together more than 6,000 athletes competing for 3,244 medals, the largest medal count in the history of the championships. He noted that the government has already committed RD$315 million to the Dominican Olympic Committee for athletes’ training, coaches and preparatory camps, and that high-performance athletes in the national program have received a 100 % funding increase.

The competition will cover 40 sports, 57 disciplines and 63 modalities, with 483 events across eight venues: 26 in the National District, 23 in Santo Domingo, two each in Santiago and Bonao, and one each in Punta Cana, Cabarete, Baní and Juan Dolio.

The government says it expects roughly 90 % of the venues to be completed by December 2025, citing major investments in the Juan Pablo Duarte Olympic Center and the Parque del Este among several facilities.

A notable legacy dimension of the event is the “Villa Centroamericana y del Caribe”, a complex of 150 low-cost housing units that will be converted into affordable homes for Dominican families after the Games.

President Abinader described the games as a platform to promote inclusion, national unity and partnerships across clubs, institutions and communities.

According to the president, the preparations for the Games aim to extend beyond sport: “This will be an event that consolidates our identity, our hospitality and positions the Dominican Republic as a regional reference”, he said at the fenced-in Juan Pablo Duarte Olympic Centre.

This announcement reflects the government’s broader strategy to leverage major sporting events for urban renovation, housing development and national branding, offering a year-ahead glimpse of the national ambitions behind the 2026 Games.