Study to test Birmingham bid for 2026 Commonwealth Games

Birmingham has taken its first formal step towards bidding for the 2026 Commonwealth Games, appointing a team of experienced sports event specialists to test whether the city could host them.

The city council has appointed Origin Sports Group to carry out a feasibility study during the first three months of the year, with a final report due by April.

Who is doing the work

Origin Sports Group leads a consortium that also includes Four Communications, PwC and Trivandi. Its chairman, Sir Keith Mills, was chief executive of the London 2012 bid company that won the right to stage the Olympic and Paralympic Games, and chaired the Invictus Games in 2014.

The expert panel will be led by Alan Pascoe, a vice chairman of London 2012, who has worked on every Commonwealth Games since 1992 and helped several cities, including Glasgow for 2014, put together winning bids.

The cost of the study is capped at £170,000, of which £50,000 is being paid by the Greater Birmingham and Solihull Local Enterprise Partnership.

What the study will look at

The study will set out the facilities and infrastructure that a Birmingham bid would need, so that the council and its partners can draw up firm proposals. It will cover the requirements for around 6,500 athletes and officials from 71 nations and territories, up to 17 sports plus para-sport events, a workforce of 80,000 including volunteers, and between 12 and 15 competition venues.

A Games of this size would also involve around 1,000 hours of live television coverage for a global audience of 1.5 billion people, and ticket sales of around 1.5 million.

"A natural choice"

Councillor Ian Ward, deputy leader of Birmingham City Council, said the consultants had an unrivalled track record. Based on the experience of Glasgow, the most recent UK host, he said the city would benefit enormously from the Games, pointing to faster investment in infrastructure, a sporting legacy at grassroots level and a boost to the city's image as a global city.

"Through the feasibility study, we'll know what is needed to make the games work and become a success."

Debbie Jevans, who is leading the project for Origin Sports Group, said the company was pleased to have been selected from a competitive tender process and looked forward to assessing the city's credentials.

Venues already in place

Steve Hollis, chair of the Local Enterprise Partnership, said the area was well placed to welcome athletes and fans. "Unlike other cities considering bidding, we already have significant infrastructure in place and HS2 is also set to be operational from 2026," he said.

That is one of Birmingham's strongest arguments. The city already has a record of staging major events, from world-class athletics at the Alexander Stadium and indoor arena to international cricket at Edgbaston, and many of the venues a Games would need are already built.

The last Commonwealth Games held in England were in Manchester in 2002. If the study concludes that a bid is realistic, the city will then need to decide whether to put itself forward in what is expected to be a competitive race.