Even in Busan, Italy "No votes gained in 3 years... Very Disappointing Defeat"

Roberto Gualtieri, the mayor of Rome, Italy, which failed to secure the bid for the 2030 World Expo, expressed regret, calling it a "very disappointing defeat."

On the 28th (local time), Rome received 17 votes in the host city selection vote held at the 173rd General Assembly of the International Bureau of Expositions (BIE) in Paris, France. It ranked last (3rd place), trailing behind Riyadh, Saudi Arabia, which received 119 votes with more than two-thirds majority, and Busan, South Korea, which came in second with 29 votes.

After the results were announced, Mayor Gualtieri told reporters, "It is a very disappointing defeat," adding, "We have no choice but to accept the defeat fairly." He emphasized, "It was an overwhelming victory for Riyadh," and "(Although we lost) Rome's bid was a beautiful project."

[Image source=Yonhap News]

Local Italian media reacted to Saudi Arabia's successful bid as an expected outcome. However, there was some shock when it was revealed that Italy ranked behind South Korea as well. The daily newspaper La Repubblica criticized, "The votes gained from three years of bidding are almost none," and "We did not even reach the minimum vote target."

It added, "The Rome Expo Bid Committee aimed for a runoff vote to overturn the situation, but the result was certain after the first round of voting," and "The 2030 Expo will be held in Saudi Arabia. Not in Busan. Especially not in Rome."

Italian Prime Minister Giorgia Meloni has not made any statements following the announcement of the voting results. Meloni did not attend the BIE General Assembly that day and instead appealed for Rome to be chosen through a video message. Some analyses suggested that Meloni's absence was due to an internal judgment that Rome's chances of winning were slim.

This content was produced with the assistance of AI translation services.