The 2025–26 Men's FIS Alpine Ski World Cup Downhill season will begin at the formidable Birds of Prey racecourse in Beaver Creek, widely regarded as one of the most technically demanding tracks in the world.

Leading the group of top male skiers in the FIS Alpine Ski World Cup is Marcel Hirscher, a record-holder with eight Overall Crystal Globes. Ingemar Stenmark held the record for the greatest number of 86 World Cup wins. Marco Odermatt, Alexis Pinturault, along with Aleksander Aadmot Kilde and Hirscher, round out the group of active skiers in this elite selection.

Following their disappointment at the previous Games, Austria proved to be the top Alpine skiing nation with nine medals, three of them gold, ahead of the United States (five medals, two of which were gold) and their traditional rivals, Switzerland (three medals, two of which were gold).

Bode Miller of the U.S. and Aksel Lund Svindal of Norway won three medals: a gold medal, a silver medal, and a bronze medal. German skier Maria Riesch was Vancouver's sole double gold medalist in 2010.

In the Salt Lake City Olympic Winter Games, Janica Kostelic was to become the first woman to win four alpine skiing medals at the same Games, and her three golds were also an unprecedented achievement in the sport.