Condoms distributed at the Milano Cortina 2026 Winter Olympics are reportedly being resold online for as much as £90, after supplies in the Olympic Village ran out within days.
The Games officially began on 6 February, with around 2,871 athletes staying in the Olympic Village. Free condoms — a long-standing Olympic tradition promoting safe sex — were made available to competitors, but reportedly ran out after just three days.
According to Italian outlet La Stampa, fewer than 10,000 condoms were distributed across the various Athlete Villages. That figure is dramatically lower than the 300,000 condoms provided at the Paris 2024 Summer Olympics.
Souvenirs or Side Hustle?
The rapid shortage may not have been purely down to enthusiastic athletes.
Reports suggest that some condoms were taken as souvenirs — or to resell online. British tabloid The Sun claimed that packets bearing official Olympic branding appeared on marketplace Vinted, with one listing priced at €105 (around £91).
However, the item does not appear to be listed on the UK version of the app.
Athletes React
British-Spanish figure skater Olivia Smart even shared her own search for contraception in the Village on TikTok, posting a clip showing the distinctive yellow Olympic packaging.
“I found them,” she said in the video, adding: “They have everything you need.”
One commenter joked:
“I would 100% assume those were tea bags.”
Organisers Respond
The Milano Cortina 2026 organising committee confirmed the shortage in a statement to People magazine:
“We can confirm that condom supplies in the Olympic Villages were temporarily depleted due to higher-than-anticipated demand.”
Organisers added that additional supplies were already being delivered:
“They will be continuously replenished until the end of the Games to ensure continued availability.”
The Olympic condom tradition dates back decades and has become part of the culture of the Games — but this year’s unexpectedly small supply has turned a routine health initiative into an unlikely resale market.
