The Press and Journal (Inverness, Highlands, and Islands)
City hopes for £390m windfall from Games
Birmingham’s Commonwealth bid
Birmingham is bidding to host the 2026 Commonwealth Games with hopes the city could benefit from a £390million economic windfall.
Civic leaders said the sporting event would be able to “showcase the very best” of the city and deliver a “huge economic impact” to the wider West Midlands.
The city highlighted the possible financial legacy of hosting the games, by creating thousands of new jobs, benefiting local suppliers, and boosting existing transport and housing plans. It pointed to the benefits of the Glasgow Games in 2014, which it said had generated £740million for the Scottish economy and brought in 690,000 more visitors.
Setting out Birmingham’s credentials, the city council’s leader John Clancy said: “Birmingham is a fantastic sporting city and we have proven ourselves to be warm, welcoming and friendly hosts to a number of international events in recent years.
“In addition to the huge economic impact, these events showcase the very best of our city and wider region to the world.”
He added: “I hope that we get to do that yet again in 2026 and you can be sure the games would be a huge success in Birmingham.”
In 2002 the games were held in Manchester.
The Birmingham bid’s backers said the city had a track record of hosting international sporting events
“These events showcase the very best of our city and region to the world”
at venues like Villa Park, Edgbaston cricket ground and the Alexander Stadium. It could also draw in venues outside Birmingham, including the West Bromwich Albion ground and Coventry’s Ricoh Arena.
The games were last hosted in the UK by Glasgow in 2014, while the next competition will be at the Gold Coast in Queensland, Australia, in 2018.
The 2022 games is set to take place in Durban, South Africa.