Overnight it was announced that , beating out Houston and Montreal to become the first city in the southern hemisphere to host the fast-growing international event.
Members of Australia's LGBTIQ+ community followed along from home last night, as the news was announced during a live ceremony in Athens, where delegates from Sydney's Gay and Lesbian Mardi Gras had engaged in a long bidding and pitching process.
The news was met with excitement from members of the community - embracing an opportunity to represent Sydney's LGBTIQ+ culture and night life on a world stage.
In the European summer of 2017, I attended WorldPride in Madrid, Spain. With a far-reaching program for the event and thousands of visitors from all over the globe, it felt like Mardi Gras on steroids in the best possible way.
The buzzing crowd at the airport - and even on my flight - made it feel like I was en route to the campest sporting event in history. Changing planes in Qatar, it was particularly fascinating to see members of the LGBTIQ+ community emerging from countries where same-sex relationships are still socially-condemned.
Over the week I spent there, I witnessed a small taste of what WorldPride could be like in Sydney. There were huge street parties with crowds spilling in from all over the city to dance. There were live performances and DJs set up on every other street corner. Gay bars were overflowing. Grindr was popping off.
There was a real, electric sense of celebration, embraced by Madrid's local politicians, businesses and residents alike.
The WorldPride parade was massive - similar to our annual Sydney Gay and Lesbian Mardi Gras parade, but on a scale I'd never seen before. The floats and parade marchers were televised live on TV across Europe, with commentators reflecting on the long journey Spain had taken to achieve LGBTIQ+ rights, which, in many ways, culminated in same-sex intercourse being decriminalised for a final time in 1979.
Madrid got into the WorldPride spirit. Source: Supplied
Much like Australia, Spain is now viewed as one of the most and LGBTIQ+ friendly countries in the world.
Which, to be honest, was pretty apparent given the gusto with which it embraced WorldPride festivities.
Part of what made WorldPride in Madrid so special was the multidimensional approach the city had taken in organising the celebration. It wasn't just about bringing alive the local night life - every local art gallery and museum curated beautiful and educational exhibitions and cultural programs which shone a light on corners of the community not celebrated often enough.
Organisers of WorldPride in Madrid expected 1-2 million visitors during the celebration. Source: Getty Images
A dance party, anyone? Source: Supplied
I'd like to think it will be a chance for our community to put its best foot forward; to craft an event program that shows off our history - highlighting the plight of the 1978 marchers and the rich culture of Australia's First Nations communities.
I also hope it will be an opportunity for Sydney's LGBTIQ+ run small businesses to flourish, for our LGBTIQ+ artists and creatives to be gainfully employed and collaborated with, and for Australia's politicians to meaningfully look at Sydney's night life and what exactly it means to be a global city.
WorldPride will be a fantastic opportunity for Sydney's LGBTIQ+ community to shine. Source: Supplied
As NSW Arts Minister Don Harwin said following the announcement last night, the event will “attract thousands of international visitors and put Sydney on the world map as a truly inclusive and united global city.”
To quote RuPaul: Don't f**k it up.
