In 2025, D.C. will host WorldPride, one of the biggest LGBTQIA+ celebrations in the world. The selection comes after InterPride, an international association representing more than 400 organizations from 70 countries, had to cancel their original plans with Taiwan to hold the celebration.

WorldPride is typically held every two years, with the inaugural event taking place in Rome in 2000. Other host cities have included Jerusalem, London, Toronto, Madrid, New York City, Copenhagen, and Sydney in 2023.

Taiwan was originally selected for 2025 and would have been the first WorldPride event in Asia. However, due to political naming disagreements between Taiwanese organizers and InterPride, the partnership was canceled. InterPride then began a search for a new host city, according to Reuters.

Capital Pride Alliance had already submitted a bid in hopes of celebrating its 50th anniversary in partnership with WorldPride, but then Taiwan was selected.

“We were all definitely hurt by not getting it,” Board of Directors President of the Capital Pride Alliance  Ashley Smith says. So when the opportunity for a second chance came to vie for the shot, Capital Pride team members traveled to Guadalajara, Mexico, to make another pitch for D.C. And this time, it was successful.

In 2019, New York City hosted WorldPride along with its commemoration of 50 years after the Stonewall Riots. New York’s event drew 5 million people. While it’s hard to say if those numbers will be quite as high for the D.C. event, it is expected to boost attendance, including drawing thousands of international visitors.

“The magnitude of people that will be in the city will probably double and triple the size that we’re normally used to,” Smith says. In 2019, the Capital Pride Celebration welcomed more than 600,000 guests, according to their website.

“So we will have to make some changes to ensure that we have proper safety, to have the events and those types of things. And we will be working on that over the next couple of years,” Smith says. Capital Pride is already starting to plan for the event in partnership with the city, and Smith says they need more hands on deck to help.

As of now, Mayor Bowser and the city haven’t shared any logistics yet, but she did announce the partnership in a Tweet today.

Pride in DC is a manifestation of our DC values—an opportunity for people to celebrate themselves & the diversity of our community.

What better way to celebrate 50 years of Pride in DC than with the largest LGBTQ+ event in the world. See you at the pride of our lifetime in 2025. https://t.co/Jj0xftfwYD

— Mayor Muriel Bowser (@MayorBowser) November 4, 2022

Smith anticipates 2025 will mean an opportunity for even more conversations, networks, and artists.

“Ryan Bos, our executive director, always gets up on stage at some point during the festival, and he asks people, who is this first time for them coming to D.C. Pride. And, you know, so many hands go up, and it’s always just like mind-boggling to see that,” Smith says, reflecting on past DC Pride events. For the 2025 event, he hopes to share the same experience for even more people. “It will probably be the first for so many people, which is truly tremendous.”

This story has been updated to include the correct last name for the executive director of the Capital Pride Alliance.