The Bureau International des Expositions (BIE) announced, on Tuesday, November 28, that Riyadh, the capital city of the Kingdom of Saudi Arabia has been selected to host the 2030 World Expo, by securing the necessary two-thirds majority of votes in the first round.

Under the theme, "The Era of Change: Together for a Foresighted Tomorrow", Expo 2030 Riyadh will run between 1 October 2030 and 31 March 2031.

The World Expo is one of the oldest and biggest events on the planet. Every five years, a city takes its turn to host the occasion, which lasts six months at a time, and invites every country in the globe to take part in showcasing the best of what they have to offer.

It aims to help people and nations across the Earth learn by sharing ideas, at the same time demonstrating innovation and further paving the path for progress in fields such as technology and architecture. 

World Expos, also known as World's Fairs, are large global exhibitions designed to showcase the achievements of nations. The first World Expo, the Great Exhibition, took place in London in 1851, and it marked a significant transition from simple commodity exchange to the exchange of new production technologies and life concepts. 

World Expos have been held across the globe, demonstrating industrial advances and promoting the exchange of technology, trade, and culture. These exhibitions encompass universal themes that affect the full gamut of human experience, and they are held every five years. 

The history of World Expos reflects the rapid changes of the Industrial Revolution and the evolving focus on human and cultural conditions alongside technological advancements.

The first, the Crystal Palace Exhibition in London (1851), set the precedent. Subsequent expos featured iconic landmarks like the Eiffel Tower (1889), celebrated technological progress (1933), and marked milestones like Canada's centennial (Expo 67) and the 500th anniversary of Columbus's discovery (Seville Expo '92). 

Recent expos, like Shanghai 2010 and Milan 2015, focused on themes like sustainable urban development and global food challenges. World Expos continue to foster cultural exchange and showcase human progress.

The most recent World Expo took place in Dubai, the United Arab Emirates, between 1 October 2021 and 31 March 2022. The next World Expo will take place in Osaka, Kansai, Japan between 13 April and 13 October 2025.