Rotterdam becomes first Dutch Global Active City

ROTTERDAM, 29 September 2026 – Rotterdam has become the first city in the Netherlands to receive the international Global Active City certification, recognising the way sport and physical activity have been embedded across schools, neighbourhoods, public spaces and local organisations. The certification places Rotterdam in an international network of cities working to make everyday movement more accessible, and requires continued monitoring rather than ending with a one-off award.

What does Global Active City mean?

The Global Active City label is awarded through the Active Well-being Initiative to cities that have implemented a management system around physical activity and sport. Rather than judging a city simply by the number of gyms, sports clubs or major events it has, the certification looks at how different organisations work together, how local needs are assessed and whether physical activity is built into longer-term policy.

Cities go through a preparation process followed by a remote audit and an on-site audit involving local stakeholders. Certification is valid for four years, with annual follow-up audits required to maintain it. The international standard behind the programme was developed by TAFISA and Evaleo through an ISO-compatible standardisation process, while the Global Active City programme is supported by the International Olympic Committee.

Rotterdam is the first Dutch city to complete that process. The current Active Well-being Initiative register lists Rotterdam as certified in 2026 alongside cities including Hamburg, Lausanne, Liverpool, Ljubljana, Buenos Aires and Limerick.

Rotterdam's approach goes beyond sport

The certification reflects a much broader idea of an active city than organised sport alone. Rotterdam points to neighbourhood playgrounds and Cruyff Courts, school programmes, community sports coaches and public spaces designed to make walking, cycling, playing and exercising easier parts of everyday life.

Sport clubs, schools, health and welfare organisations, businesses and community partners are also part of the approach. The idea is that increasing physical activity depends on more than one municipal department, with organisations across the city working together on participation and accessibility.

Large events form another visible part of Rotterdam's sporting profile. The Rotterdam Marathon is already a fixture on the calendar, while the Artistic Gymnastics World Championships will take over Rotterdam Ahoy from 17 to 25 October 2026.

The Global Active City model itself places particular emphasis on governance and cooperation. Cities seeking certification are expected to create partnerships across the public and private sectors, monitor local activity levels and develop a city-specific physical activity strategy rather than simply adopting a standard package of measures.

Recognition presented in Rotterdam

Rotterdam received the certification during an event at Maassilo on 29 September. Alderman for Youth, Education and Sport Jeroen Postma accepted the recognition on behalf of the city, with TAFISA vice-president Jacqueline Kronenberg also present.

“This recognition belongs to all of us,” Postma said. “To the sports clubs that are there for their members every week, the schools that make movement part of the school day, the partners in our neighbourhoods and all the Rotterdammers who get moving every day. Together, we make Rotterdam stronger, healthier and more vital.”

The certification does not mean Rotterdam has reached an endpoint. The city says it intends to continue investing in accessible opportunities to exercise, better outdoor spaces and initiatives that make walking, cycling, sport and play easier close to home.

Rotterdam joins an international network

The Global Active City programme grew out of work by TAFISA and Evaleo with support from the IOC. The first cities were certified in 2018, when Buenos Aires, Hamburg, Lillehammer, Liverpool, Ljubljana and Richmond in British Columbia received the label.

The network has since expanded. The Active Well-being Initiative currently lists 12 certified Global Active Cities, with Rotterdam becoming the latest Dutch addition in 2026.

What makes the certification particularly relevant to Rotterdam is that it treats physical activity as part of urban life rather than a separate sports policy. That connects everything from neighbourhood sports facilities and school programmes to cycling, walking and the design of public space.

And because annual follow-up audits are built into the system, Rotterdam will have to keep demonstrating that those policies and partnerships are being maintained. The new label is therefore less a trophy for something completed and more a benchmark the city now has to keep meeting.