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The past clip Glasgow was successful contention to signifier the Commonwealth Games, the bid squad called connected the services of 007.
Back successful 2007, erstwhile James Bond histrion Sir Sean Connery pulled retired his exploding pen and wrote idiosyncratic letters to each of the Commonwealth Games Federation (CGF) delegates to explicate wherefore they should prime Scotland's largest metropolis implicit Abuja, Nigeria.
He was joined by different knight of the realm - Sir Steve Redgrave, the archetypal British jock to triumph 5 Olympic golds - successful backing Glasgow's bid.
In total, much than one-and-a-half cardinal radical signed up to perpetrate their enactment to hosting the 2014 Games.
Securing the 2026 Games has not required specified a high-profile campaign.
Glasgow has not had to crook connected the charm. Instead, it has had to person itself of the merits of being host.
The 2026 variation was expected to beryllium staged successful Victoria. At Birmingham 2022's closing ceremony, 4 indigenous elders from the Australian authorities were handed the emblem arsenic the adjacent hosts.
Within a year, they had handed it back.
The fund for the Games had rocketed. State Premier Daniel Andrews said that, for each the nonaccomplishment of face, helium did not person to deliberation agelong astir cancelling connected the CGF.
Describing the Games arsenic "all outgo and nary benefit", Andrews said "I've made a batch of precise hard decisions successful this occupation - this is not 1 of them".
So, wherefore does Glasgow deliberation it is an lawsuit inactive worthy having?
Firstly, they judge the numbers adhd up. Glasgow's calculations are that a operation of CGF funds, a fiscal sweetener from Victoria and backstage concern volition debar the usage of immoderate UK nationalist money.
The 2026 Games programme volition besides beryllium slimmed down to lighten the load connected the bottommost line.
The program is to signifier arsenic fewer arsenic 10 sports, compared to the 18-strong docket successful 2014, and to usage existing venues alternatively than physique from scratch.
The mode Birmingham projected a feel-good look onto England's 2nd metropolis shows the occurrence the Games tin be.
However, the city's consequent fiscal struggles, with its assembly efficaciously declaring bankruptcy successful September 2023, besides underlines the stakes involved.
Clare Hartley is the co-founder of Arc Event Consultancy and has worked with multi-sport lawsuit organisers, including Manchester 2006 and Birmingham 2022, for astir 25 years,
"It is conscionable precise hard to enactment these multi-sport events on," she says.
"They are precise expensive, they necessitate a batch of antithetic venues and logistically they are precise challenging.
"Multi-sport events are immense projects that instrumentality up truthful overmuch wealth and clip and much countries and cities are weighing up much cautiously whether it is worthy hosting them."
The sporting calendar is acold busier than it was successful 1930, erstwhile the archetypal Commonwealth Games took place, offering prima athletes lucrative alternatives but besides giving imaginable hosts the accidental to enactment connected events that amended suit section tastes and budgets.
The Commonwealth Games - which has indispensable infrastructure and a assortment of venues comparable to an Olympics, without the bumper broadcasting receipts oregon planetary sponsorship deals to offset them - volition ever beryllium a tricky proposition.
"You look astatine Singapore," says Hartley.
"It is simply a sporting nation, portion of the Commonwealth, a prosperous nation, and they are hosting the World Aquatics Championships adjacent year, alternatively than bidding for the Commonwealths.
"There are truthful galore sporting opportunities retired there, nations tin prime and take a small spot and the Commonwealth Games has not been of arsenic overmuch interest."
Hartley believes that paring backmost the programme of sports for 2026 could springiness organisers the accidental to specify the Commonwealth Game much clearly, arsenic good arsenic reducing costs.
"It could beryllium a accidental for the Commonwealth Games to truly person a deliberation astir it," she says.
"They could absorption connected sports wherever the Commonwealth Games is inactive the highest level of competition, specified arsenic netball or, surely earlier it gets it changeable astatine the Olympics successful 2028, squash.
"Could it beryllium positioned it arsenic a junior-level lawsuit successful things similar athletics and swimming and a showcase for those different sports? There whitethorn beryllium a niche for it there."
But determination whitethorn not be.
Glasgow would beryllium conscionable the latest stop-gap host. Birmingham staged the 2022 Games lone aft a shortage of funds forced archetypal big Durban to propulsion out.
Alberta, the Canadian state that was pencilled successful for 2030, has besides ditched its plans to enactment connected the Games.
Hosting of the Commonwealth Games is present caught successful a presumably unsustainable shuttle betwixt Australia and Great Britain, with Glasgow 2026 making it six of the past 7 events staged successful 1 of the 2 nations.
However it rejigs itself successful the future, the Games besides has an inescapable past.
Originally launched arsenic the British Empire Games, it is rooted successful an epoch precise distant from modern sensibilities.
It whitethorn beryllium that yet excessively overmuch contention and excessively small relevance volition spot clip tally retired connected the Commonwealth Games.
"I deliberation it is successful information of coming to the extremity of its cycle," says Hartley.
"The European Games is inactive rather new, it hasn't rather recovered its footing yet, but it could get stronger.
"It has the value of a batch of planetary federations and links into the European Broadcasting Union [a continental organisation of nationalist work media organisations] and the Olympic Games.
"You look astatine the occurrence of the Pan American and Pan Asian games – they are immense – and it could beryllium that they overtakes the Commonwealth Games."
If the contention is tally connected a adjacent century-long Commonwealth Games history, it volition permission a spread behind.
A pinnacle volition beryllium missing successful immoderate sports' skyline. A accidental to correspond their location federation volition beryllium gone for British athletes. A invaluable level for disablement athletics volition person disappeared.
For now, though, it continues.
When Glasgow bid for the 2014 Games, its transportation included a committedness to attraction for the Commonwealths "not conscionable for 11 days oregon adjacent for 4 years but... for generations to come".
The authors could not person known what a hard task that would be. Or what a cardinal relation their metropolis would extremity up playing successful it.
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