Sölden Kicks Off Winter Season: Alpine Ski World Cup Starts October 25th

Winter is approaching, and with it, the major event that marks the start of the alpine season: Sölden. On October 25, the Rettenbach Glacier will once again gather the world's skiing elite to officially inaugurate the 2025-2026 World Cup.

The Austrian resort dresses in white to host the first events of the circuit, with the traditional women's and men's giant slalom. Beyond the spectacle, these initial descents will carry special weight: they open in an Olympic winter, where every thousandth of a second counts toward qualification for Milan-Cortina 2026.

After Sölden, the calendar will unfold across Europe and America at a frantic pace. The first men's super-G is scheduled for November 27 in Copper Mountain (USA), followed by the inaugural downhill in Beaver Creek on December 4. In the women's category, St. Moritz will take over in mid-December with two downhills and a super-G that promise great duels on the Swiss snow.

The heart of the season will be marked by the classic January events: Adelboden (10th and 11th) with its technical giant slalom and slalom walls; Wengen (from the 16th), with its legendary Lauberhorn downhill; and Crans-Montana, which between January 30 and February 1 will serve as a general rehearsal for the 2027 World Championships.

In total, FIS has confirmed 38 races for men—nine downhills, eleven slaloms, nine giant slaloms, and nine super-Gs—and 37 for women, with ten slaloms, ten giant slaloms, eight super-Gs, and nine downhills. The final stretch will take the racers to Norway: on March 22, the speed events will be held in Kvitfjell, and on March 25, the finals in Hafjell, with the men's slalom and women's giant slalom bringing the season to a close.

And in between, the grand event: the Winter Olympic Games. From February 6 to 22, Milan-Cortina 2026 will bring together the world's best in two iconic settings. Women will compete in Cortina d'Ampezzo, while men will do so on the legendary Stelvio in Bormio. The Olympic calendar will begin with the men's downhill on February 7 and conclude with the slaloms on February 16 and 18.

With the peaks of Tyrol about to open their slopes, the roar of the machinery can already be heard in Sölden. The countdown has begun: in a few days, the snow will once again tell stories of speed, precision, and glory.