Olympics in Spain

National Economics Olympiad

The Economics Olympiad in Spain held its first edition during the 2002-2003 academic year in Valencia, an initiative of the Faculty of Economics at the University of Valencia, initially aimed at secondary schools in the province. Around 30 schools and 150 students participated in that first edition, laying the foundation for a project with a clear commitment to growth.

In the 2003-2004 academic year, the initiative was extended to other universities in the Valencian Community and, from the 2004-2005 academic year onwards, it went beyond the regional level with the incorporation of new faculties of Economics and Business Sciences from different Spanish regions, including the Balearic Islands, Malaga, La Laguna and Oviedo.

With the progressive increase in the number of participating universities, eventually reaching eight faculties organizing local phases, the need arose to take a further step and establish a national competition in which the top-ranked students from each local phase could participate. This project was formally presented in April 2008 during the meeting of the Spanish Conference of Deans of Economics and Business (CONFEDE) held at the University of La Laguna. At that time, 17 faculties joined the initiative, which has continued to grow over time and now includes the participation of 44 faculties throughout Spain.

Throughout its history, the Spanish Economics Olympiad has enjoyed significant institutional support, fundamental to its consolidation. Among these, the collaboration of the Spanish Economics Association (AEE) stands out, contributing institutional support and awarding a prize to the Economics Department of the winning student's secondary school. Similarly, the Spanish Association of Economics and Business Management (ACEDE) recognizes the faculty whose team achieves the highest average score in the competition.

Likewise, the involvement of secondary school economics teachers is especially relevant, both individually and through their representative organizations, in particular the State Confederation of Associations of Secondary School Economics Teachers (CEAPES) and its regional associations, whose collaboration has been key to the development and continued success of this initiative.

Editions

Previous Editions

The first final phase of the Spanish Economics Olympiad took place in Valencia in 2009. Since then, the Olympiad has consolidated its prestige to become an annual benchmark event for high school students from secondary education centers interested in the field of Economics and Business.

The evolution of this initiative is particularly significant: from the 14 universities that participated in its first edition to the 45 public universities that were part of the organization of the last edition held in 2019 at the Complutense University of Madrid, the Spanish Economics Olympiad has experienced sustained growth that reflects its excellent reception among students, secondary school teachers and the participating universities themselves.

The national phase of the Olympiad is organized in a rotating manner, changing annually among the different universities involved, which reinforces its collaborative character and its national dimension, as shown in the table below.

The participation of students and secondary schools in the local phases of the Spanish Economics Olympiad has steadily increased since its inception. The gradual addition of new universities to the project, year after year, has also contributed to the growing number of students selected to compete in the national phase.

Currently, the Economics Olympiad has nationwide coverage, with the involvement of all Spanish public universities. This remarkable growth has been accompanied by increased organizational and administrative complexity. To ensure proper coordination between the different phases of the competition, guarantee transparency in its procedures, and improve management efficiency, the Spanish Economics Olympiad Association was established in 2011 with its own legal personality.

The creation of this Association is a clear reflection of the level of consolidation and recognition achieved by the Olympiad, as well as the firm commitment of the participating universities to preserve and strengthen this academic initiative in the long term.

AOEE Universities

AOEE Universities

Program

Program

June 17, 2026 (Wednesday)

• Check-in at assigned hotel from 2:00 PM.
• Credentials will be handed out in the entrance hall of the San Carlos Hospital Building starting at 2:00 p.m.
• Opening Ceremony (7:00 p.m. to 8:00 p.m.): Auditorium of the San Carlos Hospital Building.
• Welcome cocktail (8:00 p.m. to 9:30 p.m.): Entrance courtyard of the San Carlos Hospital Building.
• Activity organized by the Aranjuez City Council (10:00 p.m.): theatrical tour.

June 18, 2026 (Thursday)

• Exam (10:00 to 13:00 hours): Pavía Building.
• Association Assembly (11:00 a.m. to 1:00 p.m.): Assembly Hall of the Pavía Building.
• Activity organized by the Aranjuez City Council for teachers (11:00 am): Visit to the Prince's Gardens.
• Lunch (2:00 p.m.) at Casa Matilde and Jardín del Príncipe restaurants.
• Fun activity for students organized by the Aranjuez City Council (5:00 p.m. to 7:00 p.m.): Canoeing. IMPORTANT: For this activity, a swimsuit, towel, and sunscreen are recommended.
• Cultural activity for teachers and university representatives, organized by the Aranjuez City Council (5:00 p.m. to 7:00 p.m.): visit to the Royal Palace.
• Bus departure time to gala dinner: 20:30 p.m.
• Gala dinner (starting at 9:00 p.m.): Casa del Valle Wineries and Vineyards.

June 19, 2026 (Friday)

• Awards ceremony (11:30 a.m. to 1:30 p.m.): Royal Theatre of Aranjuez.
• Spanish Wine (2:00 PM to 3:00 PM): Royal Theatre.

Regulation

Bases

FGENERAL FUNCTIONING

The rules that define the framework in which the Spanish Economics Olympiad takes place are as follows:

1. The Spanish Economics Olympiad is an academic and educational competition whose objectives are to stimulate the study of economics and business economics among young people, reward effort and academic excellence, and establish stable links between university education and other educational levels.

2. For this purpose, the "Spanish Economics Olympiad Association" has been established, which is responsible for convening and organizing the Spanish Economics Olympiad annually.

3. The Spanish Association of Accounting and Business Administration (AECA), the Spanish Association of Economics (AEE) and the General Council of Economists of Spain collaborate with the "Association" in the Spanish Economics Olympiad 

4. To participate in the Spanish Economics Olympiad, it is mandatory, on the part of the corresponding faculties, to pay the annual fee for registration to the national phase, within the deadlines and dates established for this purpose.

5. The annual process, which culminates in the celebration of the Spanish Economics Olympiad, is structured in two stages: a Local Phase, which takes place in each of the Faculties of Economics and Business of the public universities registered in the process, and a National Phase, which is normally held at the end of June in one of the faculties participating in the test.

LOCAL PHASES

1. The organization of the local phase of the Spanish Economics Olympiad falls to the Faculties of Economics and/or Business Studies at the various Spanish public universities. Each Faculty will create a Local Committee, chaired by the Dean or their designee. The composition, responsibilities, and funding of the local committees will be determined internally by each Faculty.

2. The Local Commission of each Faculty has absolute autonomy to determine the structure of the exam that will select the three candidates to be presented to the national phase.

3. Students enrolled in subjects related to economics and business economics in the 2nd year of Baccalaureate, during the academic year of the call, from all public and private centers within the administrative scope of the Faculty, will be able to participate.

4. The syllabus for the local phase tests will be that established in the official program of "Business and Business Model Design" from the 2nd year of Baccalaureate, although the Local Commission may incorporate questions from the "Economics" program of the 1st year of Baccalaureate. The Local Commission may, due to dates and the breadth of the syllabus, exclude some topics, after prior warning and general information.

5. The Local Committee is responsible for submitting a list, in order of priority, of the three selected candidates, and any alternates it deems necessary, for participation in the subsequent national phase. Each of the participating Spanish public universities' Faculties of Economics and/or Business will award first, second, and third prizes to the top three finishers in their respective local phase. These prizes will be determined each academic year. In addition, the Faculty may award as many additional prizes as it considers appropriate, depending on its available resources.

6. It is the task of the Local Commission to take care of the academic preparation of the selected students in view of the national phase tests.

7. The three candidates nominated by the participating faculties may attend the national phase of the competition, accompanied by a faculty representative appointed by the Local Committee. The travel expenses for the three selected students, their accompanying professor, and the faculty representative will be covered by the faculty organizing the local phase. 

THE NATIONAL PHASE

1. The tests that lead to the national phase will usually be held in the last week of June, after the first call for the University Access Tests has been held in all the autonomous communities.

2. The syllabus for the national phase exams will be that established in the official programs for "Economics" in the first year of high school and "Business and Business Model Design" in the second year of high school, published in the Official State Gazette (BOE). The exam will consist of three parts: a section of theoretical questions, another of numerical exercises, and a third of text commentary on current economic affairs. The exam may only be answered in Spanish.

3. The national phase tests will take place each academic year, in the Faculty chosen at the annual assembly of the Spanish Economics Olympiad Association, from among those that offer to organize it.

4. The Spanish Economics Olympiad Association is solely responsible for organizing and preparing the exams for the national phase. To this end, an Academic Committee has been established, composed of six members (three from the Business Economics area and three from the General Economics area), elected at the Association's General Assembly upon the recommendation of the Board of Directors. This committee will be responsible for preparing and grading the final phase exam. The results will be announced at a public event and on the Spanish Economics Olympiad website.

5. The Local Commission of the Faculty hosting the final phase of the Olympiad will be responsible for structuring the framework in which the tests are developed, as well as providing support to the participants during the days of its celebration; this Commission will work in coordination with the Board of Directors of the Spanish Economics Olympiad Association.

6. The  National Phase awards The following will be awarded: Gold Medal; Silver Medal; Bronze Medal; and 7 Diplomas accrediting them as finalists of the competition.

• Resolution of February 3, 2026, of the State Secretariat for Education, announcing national grants and awards for the Olympiads of Mathematics, Physics, Chemistry, Biology, Geology, Economics and Informatics and grants for the National Junior Mathematics Olympiad corresponding to the year 2026.

7. Participation in the Spanish Economics Olympiad implies full acceptance of the rules, as well as the decisions of the Academic Committee, whose results are final.

Phases

Phases

The Economics Olympiad consists of three phasesLocal Phase, National Phase and International Phase.

Each university organizes its own Local PhaseThis competition involves students enrolled in the Business Economics course, in their second year of high school, from secondary schools within each university's administrative area. The students take a test that includes problems, multiple-choice or essay questions, and/or text commentaries related to economic and business topics.

In each Local Phase, the three best students are selected. National Phase (which is the one that the Rey Juan Carlos University will organize for the 2026 edition) the three students selected by the different universities compete, with the completion of a new test, with content from both General Economics and Business Economics, which determines the ten students awarded in each edition of the Olympiad.

Subsequently, the first five students will attend the International Phase (https://ecolymp.org/). In this phase, students take individual and team tests in economics and finance in traditional classrooms, computer labs, and business case studies lasting 24 hours. Simultaneously, they receive training from tutors at leading consulting firms and through masterclasses given by internationally renowned economists. Individual and team awards are given during this phase.

Testing

Testing

The national phase test of the Economics Olympiad has a maximum duration of three hours and consists of three theoretical/practical parts:

1. Multiple choice questions (up to 4 points). This part consists of 16 multiple-choice questions (test type, four answers), which may be theoretical and/or practical, related to economics and business.

2. Numerical exercises (up to 4 points). This part of the test will consist of two numerical exercises, one on economics and one on business, with a grade of 2 points each.

3. Economic text commentary (up to 2 points)This exercise consists of answering three questions about a published economic news article. Assessment will be given to the maturity of the understanding of economic and business concepts.

Exams from previous editions: Access

Premio

Awards

In the Spanish Economics Olympiad, the following prizes are awarded to the students who obtain the best results:Awards, fully funded by the Ministry of Education, Vocational Training and Sports of the Government of Spain:

They are granted two additional cash prizes, which will be compatible with the prizes for positions 1 to 10: 

• €1.000 for the first ranked student.
• €1.000 for the second ranked student.

There is also Other awards additional directs:

• In-kind aid to the 5 top-ranked student(s) for participation in the International Olympics.

• El General Council of Economists (CGEE), It offers the five students participating in the International Phase a course to choose from a selection of courses offered by the School of Efficient Knowledge

• Premio for an amount of €1.000 of the Spanish Association of Economics (AEE), for him Department of Economics of the Student Olympiad Winner.

• The Spanish Association of Accounting and Business Administration (AECA) and the CONTEA Foundation present a certificate to the two students with the best grades in the accounting and finance exercise. 

• The top three teams will receive a certificate of achievement.

All participants in the Olympiad receive a certificate of participation.

Information and Registration

Registration information

To register, please access the corresponding form below:

• Registration of participating local teams: online form
• Registration of Faculty Deans: online form

The Olympiad Secretariat will confirm receipt of the document via email to the University representative.

The registration of each Faculty It entails a fee of 500€ including: 

• Registration of 3 students
• Registration of 1 high school teacher
• Registration of 1 representative from the corresponding University

The registration of Deans It entails a fee de €175, which does NOT include hotel accommodation.

Important Dates for Registration:

• Registration date of the Deans of Faculty: from March 15 to April 15, 2026
• Registration date of the local teams: From April 1st to April 30th, 2026

 Accommodations 🏨:

Hotel NH Collection Palacio de Aranjuez | https://share.google/D3vJ0POZxtYsLfp4j

Occidental Aranjuez Hotel |  https://share.google/7uGmSsnkhNYTWDvam

IMAGE RIGHTS.

Audiovisual content (photographs, videos, etc.) that may be obtained during the XVII National Economics Olympiad will be treated according to the rules of the Spanish Economics Olympiad Association.
The audiovisual content produced during the event will be the property of the Association and, apart from being made available to participants, may be freely used in publications on websites, social networks, etc. of the Faculties that are part of the Association.

Registration in the XVII National Economics Olympiad implies acceptance of the transfer of image rights as described in the previous paragraph.

Student Registration Ministry

Student registration deadline: from May 11 to 22, 2026 on the Ministry's website (Available soon)

Deans' Registrations

Deans' Registrations

URJC current account (IBAN): ES41 2100 6428 2513 0020 3550

BIC/SWIFT Code: CAIXESBBXXX

CONCEPT: Attendees must provide the name of the institution and their full name so that payments can be clearly identified. Payments will be made via bank transfer (card payments are not yet available).

You can send proof of payment to: 

Authorization for Minors

Authorization Document for Minors

Download link: to access 

Important: The document must be attached as a required field in the registration form.