Barcelona has been named the 2026 World Capital of Architecture by the International Union of Architects (UIA), joining Rio de Janeiro and Copenhagen on a list of cities to receive the UNESCO-backed distinction.

The Catalan capital beat out Beijing for the next edition of the honor and will now host the UIA’s triennial conference and general assembly following the recent anointment of Copenhagen, which will hold the title in 2023.  

Barcelona’s winning bid was titled “One today, one tomorrow” and will explore the city’s relationship to sustainability drives and the future of architecture “with the aim of transferring [to] the whole of the society the importance and value of architecture and urbanism,” according to a COAC statement.

The congress is slated to coincide with the long-awaited completion of the Sagrada Familia in time for the 100th anniversary of the tragic death of its architect Antoni Gaudí. The city has been lobbying to play host to the New European Bauhaus announced in September as part of a €750 billion ($892 billion) EU recovery plan. Soon, Barcelona will host the 25th edition of the Spanish Biennial of Architecture and Urban Planning (BEAU), whose theme of the architect as social agent closely mirrors the 2026 plan set out by city hall and the Consejo Superior de Colegios de Arquitectos de España (CSCAE).

“Barcelona is a benchmark in terms of architecture and public space,” Assumpció Puig, Dean of the College of Architects of Catalonia (COAC) told the Al Dîa newspaper.

The city is seen internationally as a leader in superblock construction, urban forests, and gender-based urban planning. Barcelona will also be awarded an organization fee of €150,000 as part of the title. Arte for Excelencias has more on the city’s architecture-related initiatives here.