The 2026 Commonwealth Games have been saved, as Glasgow recently stepped in, after the Australian city of Victoria had withdrawn from hosting them, due to increasing organisation costs. They will however not be as spectacular as the 2014 Glaswegian Games, as their programme has been reduced to 10 disciplines, twelve sports less than in the Birmingham edition two years ago, and seven less than the last time Glasgow was the Games’ host city.
Athletics, swimming, artistic gymnastics, track cycling, netball, weightlifting, boxing, judo, bowls, and 3X3 basketball will be the events taking place, along with their paralympic versions, from 23 July to 2 August 2026. Left out by the organisation remain cricket, rugby sevens, hockey, road cycling, or marathon running. The number of stadiums used for the Games will also be reduced: only four venues will host the competitions, of which only 3,000 athletes are expected to contest. There were 7,000 of them in Glasgow, 10 years ago, and they were staying in an athlete’s village specifically created for the competition. Next Commonwealth Games’ participants will stay in hotels, in accordance with Glasgow’s cost-reduction policy.
Athletes whose sports were not selected in the Games’ programme have made their disappointment heard, although they acknowledge the exceptional circumstances in which this edition has been designed: “While understanding the unique circumstances of the 2026 Games, and reassurances from the Commonwealth Games Federation that the decision does not set a precedent for future Games, the absence of rugby sevens, along with other team sports, at Glasgow 2026 is a significant loss for players, fans, and the Games themselves”, said a spokesperson from World Rugby.
Robert Donaghue, Squash Australia chief executive, also reacted to his sport’s non-selection: “Today’s announcement is a blow to the players who have had their dream of competing in the Commonwealth Games taken away from them. […] This decision is particularly frustrating for Scotland’s and the Commonwealth’s top squash players, who work tirelessly to represent their countries at major games”, he said, even if he ensured that “representatives of the WSF and Scottish Squash have received assurances that this decision for a condensed event in 2026 will not impact the inclusion of squash into future Commonwealth Games”.
So, the Commonwealth Games will take place in 2026, but it is worth questioning their relevance, as key historic sports will not be on show in the upcoming edition. Diving, for instance, has been part of the Commonwealth Games since 1930, and hockey has been played in this same competition since 1998. They will not appear in the 2026 edition. Although the Games have lost prestige and importance since their creation in 1911, they remain an important event in some athletes’ seasons, especially for the youngest, eager to earn competing experience.
In some ways, a scaled-back version of the Games is better than nothing. The Commonwealth Games have been held almost without interruption since their creation, more than a hundred years ago. They were only cancelled in 1942 and 1946, due to World War II. Simply to honour this consistent historical background, it seemed unthinkable not to organise the competition in 2026. It may have lost in popularity, but the Birmingham 2022 edition still sold over 1,5 million tickets, and broke records in terms of TV audience. They might for some athletes only represent a waypoint between the Olympic Games or more significant competitions, but the Commonwealth Games still manage to gather thousands of high-level athletes from all over the world every four years, and gives a chance for smaller nations to express their talent in overlooked disciplines.
As long as the Commonwealth Games Federation keeps its promise and makes sure the scaled-down Glasgow edition is a once-in-a-lifetime event, I would then tend to feel glad that the Games’ heritage is preserved, despite the fully understandable disappointment of certain athletes or nations. Who knows, maybe all the uncertainty that threatened the 2026 Games and the reactions to their organisation scheme may trigger a deeper reflection, encouraging the world of sports to renew itself into a more economically accessible to all, sustainable model? 2030 and 2034 host cities are still to be determined, so only time will tell which path the Commonwealth Games will decide to follow.
Photo Credits: “View of Glasgow from Queens Park” by John Lindie is licensed under CC BY 2.0.