Commonwealth Games
BREAKING! 2026 Commonwealth Games in jeopardy as hosts, Australia pull out
Australia’s state of Victoria has pulled out of the hosting of the 2026 Commonwealth Games due to projected cost overruns, placing the future of the quadrennial multi-sport event in doubt.
The edition which is officially known as the XXIII Commonwealth Games, is a multi-sport event for members of the Commonwealth. The 2026 edition would be the first to be held since the passing on of Queen Elizabeth II and the first under King Charles III.
The hosting rights had been granted to Victoria, Australia since 12 April 2022. But now, Victoria Premier Dan Andrews said the cost of the Games, which were to have been held in four regional hubs, could blow out to more than seven billion Australian dollars ($4.8 billion) from a budgeted A$2.6 billion if they went ahead.
“Frankly A$6-A$7 billion for a 12-day sporting event, we’re not doing that,” Andrews said at a media conference.
“I will not take money out of hospitals and schools to fund an event that is three times the cost as estimated and budgeted for last year.”
Andrews said Victoria had already informed the global Commonwealth Games Federation (CGF) but the cost of breaking the 2026 contract had yet to be decided.
The CGF did not provide immediate comment but local body Commonwealth Games Australia (CGA) said the pull-out was “beyond disappointing”.
“It’s a comprehensive letdown for the athletes, the excited host communities, First Nations Australians who were at the heart of the Games, and the millions of fans that would have embraced a sixth home Games in Australia,” CGA Chief Executive Craig Phillips said in a statement.
“The stated costs overrun, in our opinion, are a gross exaggeration.”
The sporting event for mostly former British colonies has struggled to remain relevant, with five of the last six editions held in Australia or Britain.
English city Birmingham stepped in to host the 2022 Games after South Africa were stripped of them in 2017 over a lack of progress in preparations.
Though Australia hosted the Games as recently as 2018 at the Gold Coast, Victoria put its hand up for 2026 last year when no other countries showed interest.
COOLING ENTHUSIASM
Victoria officials had talked up the legacy benefits from new infrastructure in the regional hubs of Geelong, Ballarat, Bendigo and Gippsland, and an economic boost of more than A$3 billion.
Andrews said the government will instead spend more than A$2 billion on a “regional package” which would include building all permanent sporting facilities intended for the Games, along with A$1 billion for social and affordable housing.
The Australian Olympic Committee (AOC), which had spoken of the 2026 Games as a “runway” for hosting the 2032 Brisbane Olympics, said it was “an enormous disappointment” for the athletes.
The New Zealand Olympic Committee said it was “unsettling” for its own athletes who had planned for a Games close to home.
Australia, by far the Games’ most successful competing nation, has hosted five of the previous 22 editions.
A cooling of enthusiasm from one of the Games’ staunchest supporters bodes poorly for their future.
John Coates, an International Olympic Committee Vice-President and former AOC boss, said the country’s largest state of New South Wales could and should take on the Games.
NSW state capital Sydney hosted the 2000 Olympics.
However, NSW state premier Chris Minns said his government would decline any approach due to budgetary pressures.
South Australia and Western Australia states also ruled them out.
The cost of the Games and their nebulous legacy benefits have long drawn scepticism, and even the CGF has conceded they must downsize to survive.
A bid for Canadian city Hamilton to host the 2030 Games collapsed in February after failure to secure government support.
Commonwealth Games
Nigeria Steps Up Bid to Host 2030 Commonwealth Games as Delegation Arrives London
A high-powered Nigerian delegation has arrived in London, United Kingdom, for the decisive phase of the country’s campaign to host the centenary edition of the Commonwealth Games in 2030.
The team is led by Chairman of the National Sports Commission (NSC), Shehu Dikko, and the Commission’s Director General, Bukola Olopade, who are set to present Nigeria’s final case before the Games’ decision-makers on Wednesday.
Dikko had delivered Nigeria’s preliminary pitch last month, laying the foundation for this week’s crucial engagements. If successful, the bid would make Nigeria the first African nation to host the Commonwealth Games since the event’s inception in 1930.
President Bola Ahmed Tinubu has repeatedly reaffirmed the Federal Government’s full backing for the bid, assuring the international sporting community that Nigeria is ready to deliver a world-class Games.
Only last week, the President’s Chief of Staff, Femi Gbajabiamila, joined other senior government officials in welcoming the Commonwealth Games Bid Evaluation team during their inspection visit to Nigeria.
Further demonstrating the administration’s commitment, the President’s Special Assistant on Public Communication and Presidential Spokesperson, Sunday Dare, is part of the London delegation.
Other members of the Nigerian contingent include Bid Coordinator Mainasara Ilo; President of the Nigerian Olympic Committee, Habu Gumel; Minister of Arts and Culture, Hannatu Musawa; five-time Olympian and two-time Commonwealth Games gold medalist, Mary Onyali; and current para-badminton world number one, Eniola Bolaji.
Nigeria’s 2030 bid is anchored on themes of inclusivity, legacy, and development, with promises to stage a Games that not only reflects the Commonwealth spirit but also creates lasting opportunities for sport, culture, and youth empowerment across Africa.
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Nigeria’s push to become the first African country to host the Commonwealth Games gained momentum on Tuesday as the National Sports Commission (NSC) received the Commonwealth Sport Bid Evaluation Committee in Abuja.
NSC Chairman Shehu Dikko and Director General Bukola Olopade reaffirmed the Federal Government’s determination to secure the hosting rights for the 2030 Games, describing the bid as a landmark opportunity for Africa and a historic milestone for Nigeria.
Dikko stressed that President Bola Ahmed Tinubu, has thrown his full weight behind the bid, highlighting it as a platform to showcase Nigeria’s growing influence in global sports.
“We are delighted to welcome the Evaluation Committee to Abuja as a sign of our seriousness,” Dikko said.
“President Tinubu sees the Commonwealth Games as more than just an event; it will be a celebration of Africa’s sporting passion and Nigeria’s role as a continental leader.”
Olopade added that Nigeria’s bid is built on four critical pillars—modern facilities, political will, private sector support, and strong public enthusiasm.
He noted that the Bid Committee, led by veteran sports administrator Mainasara Illo, has prepared a “robust document” to strengthen Nigeria’s case.
“With our preparations, engagements, and strong government backing, we are confident Nigeria can win the right to host the Games,” Olopade said.
Underscoring government commitment, the delegation was hosted at the Presidential Villa by the Chief of Staff to the President, Femi Gbajabiamila, alongside nine Federal Executive Council members, including Minister of Youth Ayodele Olawande, Minister of Culture and Creative Economy Hannatu Musa Musawa, and Minister of Women Affairs Hajiya Imaan Sulaiman-Ibrahim.
The visiting delegation, led by Darren Hall, Director of Games and Assurance at the Commonwealth Sport, included Ann-Louise Morgan, CS Director of Sport, and Ezera Tshabangu, Regional Development Manager for Africa and Europe.
Nigeria’s bid, if successful, would make the 2030 Commonwealth Games the first ever to be hosted on African soil, fulfilling a long-standing call for inclusivity in the Commonwealth sporting family.
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Nigeria may have a major African challenger in the bid to host the 2030 Commonwealth Games. South Africa is preparing to join the competition. The Nigerian Olympic Committee (NOC) had announced a Nigerian bid in April. This follows the failed bid in 2007 for the 2014 Games.
The earlier bid was made to celebrate the 100th anniversary of the amalgamation. This amalgamation joined the Northern and Southern Protectorates with the Lagos Colony to form Nigeria.
Sports Village Square has gathered that South Africa, through its Sports Confederation and Olympic Committee (SASCOC), is making a bid and is merely waiting for cabinet approval.
The country intends to use the Commonwealth Games of 2030 as a dress rehearsal for the bigger Olympic Games.
According to the SASCOC president, Barry Hendricks, the 2030 Commonwealth Games hosting will be part of the learning curve for the Olympics. “… it teaches us what we can do over the next eight years to get to 2040.”
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