Badminton Scotland Commonwealth Games Announcement

The Commonwealth Games Federation (CGF) announced on Tuesday 22 October that Glasgow would be the Host City for the Games in 2026. It highlighted the need for a much reduced sporting programme due to the costs to deliver the Games.

It’s truly disappointing that badminton won’t be part of the Commonwealth Games lineup. Badminton has such a strong heritage within the Commonwealth, being part of each event since 1966. Badminton’s absence takes away an important platform for athletes to showcase their talent and passion, and it also limits the spirit of friendly competition that badminton fans look forward to. The Games have always been a major attraction, fostering connections among nations and encouraging younger generations to get involved. It feels like a missed opportunity to celebrate Badminton and honour its importance in our shared history.

Discussions were held with Commonwealth Games Scotland to try to ensure that Badminton was included as part of the sporting programme. However, the selection of the sports was based on several considerations including:

· Universality of participation.

· Quality of competition.

· Consumer and commercial appeal.

· Benefit to Games hosts, including cost and operational/venue complexity.

· Alignment with CGF values.

· Creating a balanced programme.

We felt and argued that Badminton met all of these criteria. However, we were not included in the 10 sport programme.

The Games will take place over 4 venues with sites chosen that were the most operationally viable and economically valuable to the Games concept, with some able to host multiple sports at the same site. This will provide significant cost savings due to reduced hire costs, security and transport requirements. Costs and operational risks were the main drivers in not considering other venues.

We have been assured that Badminton remains a valued and integral sport within the Commonwealth Games family and that the 2026 Games sport selections does not have a bearing on future editions of the Games. BWF have also been in touch with the CGF and have had similar assurances. It was highlighted that the reduced programme was the best chance of securing the short and long term future for the Games and we are confident that Badminton will be included again in 2030.

Again, we are extremely disappointed not to be included and we hope our athletes, support personnel and supporters will understand the CGF decisions.

We are excited to be welcoming players and spectators from around the world to the annual Scottish Open International Badminton event which will take place at the Emirates Arena between 21 and 24 November 2024. If you are looking to get your fix of world class badminton action, tickets are available through the link below.

The Scottish Badminton Championships 2024 – Lokkaroom – Tickets