Glasgow 2026 Commonwealth Games - What do we know so far?

Gymnastics were held at the SSE Hydro venue at Glasgow 2014

In less than two years, Glasgow will once again welcome athletes from across the globe as it hosts the 2026 Commonwealth Games.

The Commonwealth Games Federation (CGF) asked the city to step in and host after the state of Victoria in Australia pulled out.

It has been said repeatedly that the event will be a much smaller affair than usual and won't come at any cost to the public purse.

There are still some questions regarding the games but here's what we know about Glasgow 2026 so far.

What is the Commonwealth Games?

The Commonwealth Games is a multi-sport event which takes place every four years.

Dating back to 1930, they were previously known as the British Empire Games. Competitors today are mostly territories of the former empire.

Big players include Australia, Jamaica, Canada and each of the nations in Great Britain, who compete separately.

It also gives smaller nations of the Commonwealth such as the Solomon Islands and Tonga the chance to compete on the world stage.

Scotland has hosted the event on three previous occasions - Edinburgh in 1970 and 1986 and just 10 years ago Glasgow played host.

The Glasgow 2014 games saw nearly 5,000 athletes from 71 countries take part, this time 3,000 athletes from up to 74 Commonwealth nations and territories are expected to compete.

What are the dates for Glasgow 2026?

Flags of the nations at the Glasgow 2014 closing ceremony

A report by Glasgow City Council confirmed that the Games will be held between 23 July and 2 August.

That means they'll start exactly 12 years to the day after Glasgow 2014.

It will be a busy summer for major sporting competitions.

The European Championships - another multi-sport event - is taking place between 30 July and 9 August - but a host city hasn't yet been selected.

The Commonwealth Games will start just after the football World Cup, set to take place in the USA from 11 June to 19 July.

Which sports will be included?

The CGF said the a number of factors, including "universality of participation and quality of competition" as well as local appeal were considered when deciding what sports to include.

The last time the Games were in Glasgow, 17 sports were contested. While, basketball was added in 2018 for the Gold Coast Games.

A further two sports - beach volleyball and cricket - were added for Birmingham 2022 while shooting was dropped.

This time the Games will feature 10 sports:

• Athletics and para-athletics (track and field only)

• Swimming and para-swimming

• Artistic gymnastics

• Track cycling and para-track cycling

• Netball

• Weightlifting and para-powerlifting

• Boxing

• Judo

• Bowls and para-bowls

• 3x3 basketball and 3x3 wheelchair basketball

There was always going to be a drop in the number of sports, as the CGF set out a recommendation that approximately 15 sports should feature at any games from 2026 onwards.

Organisers said they understand that fans and athletes of sports not included will be "incredibly disappointed" but that these games will not influence future inclusion.

Which venues will be used?

Scotstoun Stadium is likely to host the athletics competitions

The Glasgow city council report also confirmed that the four venues for Glasgow 2026 will be the Emirates Arena, Scotstoun Stadium, Tollcross International Swimming Centre and the Scottish Event Campus (SEC).

The multi-purpose Scoutstoun arena which is the home of Glasgow Warriors rugby team and the national badminton centre, will host the athletics events.

The stadium can host around 9,700 rugby fans - less than a quarter of the 44,000 athletics fan who filled Hampden at Glasgow 2014.

The Emirates Arena, which was built for Glasgow 2014, is home to Scotland's only velodrome as well as the Commonwealth arena where Glasgow Rocks basketball team was based up until last year.

It has previously hosted tennis and indoor athletics competitions. It can hold 7,000 spectators, while the velodrome has the capacity for just under 2,000 people with space for a further 2,000 temporary seats.

Just up the road is Tollcross Swimming Pool, which will host the swimming, and the SEC, which hosted multiple events in 2014.

These venues are run by Glasgow Life, a Glasgow City Council body.

Hampden Park hosted the athletics competitions in 2014 but this is owned by the SFA, which meant renting it could have come with a hefty price-tag.

CGS said their proposal would comprise venues within an eight-mile-radius.

This ruled out Glasgow 2014 venues Strathclyde Country Park in Motherwell which hosted the triathlon, the diving venue of the Royal Commonwealth Pool in Edinburgh and the Barry Buddon shooting centre in Dundee.

Other venues built for the 2014 games, such as the National Hockey centre in the Glasgow's Gorbals aren't apart of the plans.