Three countries are in the running to hostWorld Expo 2025: Japan (Osaka), the Russian Federation (Ekaterinburg) and the Republic of Azerbaijan (Baku).

　　World Expo 2025 candidates

　　The host country will be elected by the Member States of the Bureau International des Expositions (BIE) during the Organisation’s 164th General Assembly, taking place in Paris on the afternoon of 23 November.

　　Japan’s bid is based on the theme “Designing Future Society for Our Lives” and would take place between 3 May and 3 November 2025.

　　Russia’s bid is based on the theme “Changing the World: Innovations and Better Life for Future Generations”, and would take place between 2 May and 2 November 2025.

　　Azerbaijan’s bid is based on the theme “Developing human capital, building a better future” and would take place between 10 May and 10 November 2025.

　　On the morning of 23 November, each of the three candidates will make final presentations of their Expo projects to the 164th General Assembly of the BIE. Eligible and present Member States of the BIE, represented by government-appointed delegates, will then vote for the World Expo 2025 host country in the afternoon. Each Member State has one vote, in a secret ballot using electronic voting.

　　In the first round of voting, a candidate must gather two-thirds of votes cast to be elected. If no candidate is elected outright, the two candidates with the most votes will immediately move into a second round, where the candidate with the majority of votes cast will obtain the right to host World Expo 2025.

　　World Expos, known officially as International Registered Exhibitions, are organised every five years. They can last up to six months, and international participants can build their own pavilions on the Expo site. The themes of World Expos are designed to raise awareness of and find responses to universal challenges of our time. Themost recent World Expowas held in the city of Milan, Italy, in 2015, under the theme “Feeding the Planet, Energy for Life”. Thenext World Expowill take place in Dubai (UAE) between 20 October 2020 and 10 April 2021 under the theme “Connecting Minds, Creating the Future”.