The first ? universal and international ? Expo in the modern sense of the term took place in 1851 in London, the world’s leading industrial power, which, with its vast empire had profited handsomely from free trade and the prosperity of the Victorian era. The Expo was an overwhelming success.

Every nation was invited to contribute to the exhibition, which constituted an inventory of all branches of human endeavour. Between then and the creation of the BIE in 1931 over 20 Expos took place around the world.

HISTORICAL EXPOS

	WORLD EXPO		WORLD EXPO
1851	LONDON – Great Britain	1897	BRUSSELS - Belgium
1855	PARIS - France	1990	PARIS - France
1862	LONDON – Great Britain	1904	SAINT LOUIS – USA
1867	PARIS - France	1905	LIEGE - Belgium
1873	VIENNA - Austria	1906	MILAN - Italy
1876	PHILADELPHIA – USA	1910	BRUSSELS - Belgium
1878	PARIS - France	1911	TURIN - Italy
1880	MELBOURNE - Australia	1913	GHENT - Belgium
1888	BARCELONA - Spain	1915	SAN FRANCISCO – USA
1889	PARIS - France	1929	BARCELONA - Spain
1893	CHICAGO – USA	1933	CHICAGO – USA

 

World Expos are the largest and broadest among mega events :

• Since 1996 they take place every 5 years and have duration of 6 months
• Participants include countries, international organizations, NGOs, corporations and other institutions
• The size of the site is unlimited and participants build their own pavilions. World Expos are also referred to as Universal Expos because the chosen theme concerns the whole of humanity
• The official denomination in the BIE regulations is International Registered Exhibitions.

WORLD EXPOS SINCE 1931

	WORLD EXPO		WORLD EXPO
1835	BRUSSELS - Belgium	1967	MONTREAL – Canada
1937	PARIS - France	1970	OSAKA – Japan
1939	NEW YORK – USA	1992	SEVILLE – Spain
1949	PORT-AU-PRINCE – Haiti	2000	HANNOVER – Germany
1958	BRUSSELS – Belgium	2010	SHANGHAI – China
1962	SEATTLE – USA	2015	MILAN – Italy