Sofia

Sofia is the capital of Bulgaria and one of the oldest cities in Europe: beneath its modern centre lie the ruins of Roman Serdica, on a site inhabited for millennia, and its motto — 'Расте, но не старее', 'Ever growing, never ageing' — captures that continuity. It is also defined by an unusual bond between a major capital and nature: the city spreads at the foot of Mount Vitosha, a massif for skiing and mountaineering whose highest peak, Cherni Vrah, rises to 2,290 metres at the very edge of the city. With close to 1.2 million inhabitants in its urban core, Sofia concentrates the country's political, economic and sporting life.

Its sports infrastructure is led by the Vasil Levski National Stadium, with more than 43,000 seats, complemented by Arena Sofia, Bulgaria's largest indoor hall. The city's football revolves around its two great clubs, Levski and CSKA, whose 'eternal derby' is the axis of Bulgarian football. Vitosha's proximity adds a unique mountain dimension: the Aleko centre on its slopes is the country's oldest and most visited ski resort and once hosted the 1983 Winter Universiade. Sofia has also been a top-level international host, among others as one of the host cities of the 2018 Men's World Volleyball Championship.

Sofia holds a rare double in the ACES network: it was European Capital of Sport 2018 and, six years later, World Capital of Sport 2024, in a handover from Konya. As world capital it programmed more than 300 events across the year and hosted the 5th World Sports Meeting, and ACES Europe itself links that leap to the surge in participation that began with the 2018 European recognition. Its influence reaches beyond its own borders: Sofia has helped fourteen other Bulgarian localities earn ACES recognitions, within a dense national network opened by Plovdiv in 2014 and of which the capital is the flagship city. In December 2024 it handed the baton to Monaco at the ACES gala in the European Parliament.