Milan 2026 Winter Olympics Opening Ceremony Lights Up Four Venues with Twin Cauldrons

The Milan-Cortina 2026 Winter Olympics opening ceremony will air Friday at 2 p.m. ET, broadcast across four northern Italian venues (Milan, Cortina d’Ampezzo, Predazzo and Livigno); for the first time, two cauldrons will be lit simultaneously to symbolize unity, with performances by Mariah Carey, Laura Pausini and Andrea Bocelli. The ceremony is expected to last about three hours and will be shown in the U.S. on NBC/Peacock, with other broadcasters around the world.