Scotland to Step Up?
by Michael Weadock, April 2024
Regular listeners to the podcast will know that we have discussed the future of the Commonwealth Games on numerous occasions ever since the news last Summer that Victoria had withdrawn from hosting the event in 2026. Today we reveal the detailed plan put forward by Commonwealth Games Scotland to step in to save the event.
Ian Reid is the Chair of Commonwealth Games Scotland and is a passionate supporter of the event. He also has more know how about how to host the Commonwealth Games than anyone else, having served as Chief Financial Officer for Glasgow 2014 and Chief Executive Officer for Birmingham 2022. In our latest podcast, Ian has explained the background to how and why Scotland has now emerged as the front runner for 2026 as well as outlining the all-important plans.
In brief, Ian recognises the importance of the Commonwealth Games for Scotland and its athletes. It’s a message echoed by Scottish swimmer Lucy Hope who explained to Anything but Footy how without the opportunities presented by competing for Scotland, she might not have continued with her career which has seen her recently named by Team GB for the Olympics.
“I think it’s really important the Commonwealth Games goes ahead in 2026, albeit, I’m not sure what form that will be – like previous games or slightly different.” Lucy told us, “Being Scottish, I’m always really proud to represent Scotland. I’ve been at three Commonwealth Games now and if that opportunity had been taken away from me when I was younger, I don‘t know if I would still be in the sport now. 2014 in Glasgow was really, really exciting. I think for young Scottish athletes the first thing they want to do is compete for their home country. The Commonwealth Games is the pinnacle of that for Scotland and if they’re back in Glasgow that would be really, really amazing.”
The plan: A smaller games than recent editions. 4 key venues all within an 8-mile radius. Athletics would be held at Scotstoun Stadium with swimming back at Tollcross, as it was in 2014. The Emirates Arena is able to host track cycling as well as the capability to stage another sport or two using its other multi-purpose sports halls, whilst the SECC along with the Armadillo and Hydro arenas would be able to stage a further 6 or 7 sports. In total, it’s anticipated to stage around 10 different sports with the Commonwealth Games Federation insisting on athletics and swimming and the rest of the programme to be decided on based on availability of venues and cost.
There will be no new venues and probably no temporary venues like we saw in Birmingham. That could be bad news for beach volleyball or 3x3 basketball which were staged in the city centre by converting a market into a sports venue for the duration of the event. Scotland will benefit from the £100 million that Victoria has paid in compensation to The CGF and will raise some other revenue through commercial deals and ticket sales. Whilst other bidders won’t have access to that kind of figure for further editions, it does re-set the price point of hosting and is a much more attractive proposition for a city or region moving forward.
Commonwealth Games Scotland are very keen to point out that if there is another bid on the table, they are happy to stand down. We’ve discussed on the podcast various options – a multi-country approach with different nations staging different sports, a north of England event utilising existing venues from Newcastle in the north to Sheffield in the south and from Hull in the east to Liverpool in the West, whilst Queen Elizabeth Olympic Park in London also has much to offer with the London Stadium, Aquatics Centre, Velodrome and Copper Box Arena.
Our view is England won’t be keen to host immediately after Birmingham and we know UK Sport and the Government are not willing to underwrite a bid at this stage. Our understanding also is that Manchester and the West Midlands could be looking at a future Olympic bid and may be focusing their energies in that direction. If bids are on the table from other nations, and there is a strong desire to take the Commonwealth Games to Africa, then The CGF may even have an opportunity to lock in 2026, 2030 and beyond, securing the future of the event into its second century. Scotland would be a safe pair of hands to stage 2026 at short notice and we know it would host a memorable games, whilst other cities or regions would then have a little longer to prepare and make a sustainable and economically viable plan.
Ian Reid may just have saved the event for the foreseeable future.
