‘No guarantees’ – joyful Glasgow cannot banish all Commonwealth doubts

Glasgow has been widely praised for successfully staging a scaled-back 2026 Commonwealth Games after Victoria, Australia, withdrew as host in 2023, with organisers saying the 11-day event "exceeded all expectations". However, the games' long-term future remains uncertain, as the Indian Olympic Association's chief executive admitted there are "no guarantees" that Ahmedabad, the next host city, will not also pull out before the event's 100th anniversary edition in 2030.

The Glasgow games saw 674 medals awarded and drew enthusiastic crowds to venues, with highlights including Josh Kerr's mile win at Scotstoun, Neil Fachie's velodrome victory and Jamaica's netball upset over Australia. Ticket sales of 434,000 were well below Birmingham 2022's 1.5 million, reflecting the smaller scale of this edition, and concerns persisted about limited UK broadcast coverage and the absence of several big-name athletes, including Keely Hodgkinson, Katarina Johnson-Thompson and Dina Asher-Smith. Ahmedabad's hosting in 2030 will move the games to October, easing a scheduling clash with the European Championships but lengthening an already demanding athletics season.