Truncated Games

The Commonwealth Games may face extinction as host cities withdraw due to rising costs and dwindling interest.The Commonwealth Games, once a celebration of athletic prowess and camaraderie among nations, increasingly evoke the ghosts of a colonial past. While ostensibly a symbol of shared heritage and friendly competition, the quadrennial event also serves as a poignant reminder of the imperial legacy that shaped many participating countries.

Meanwhile, lack of enthusiasm among potential host cities - driven primarily by cost - has made it increasingly likely that the Commonwealth Games may soon be relegated to history. Many pundits already expected the 2022 edition to be the last after they almost bankrupted host city Birmingham, which itself was only selected after the South African city of Durban was deemed incapable of hosting due to financial constraints. Several cities backed out after considering bids to host the 2026 games, leaving the Australian state of Victoria as the only bidder. Victoria wanted to spread the games into several smaller cities instead of Melbourne. But barely a year after winning hosting rights, Victoria backed out due to cost escalation, and after a scramble, the Scottish city of Glasgow won the right to host a ridiculously scaled-down version of the games.

The 2026 edition will only feature 10 sports, compared to 19 in the previous edition. Meanwhile, instead of an athletes' village, competitors will be housed in university dorm rooms and hotels. This is probably fitting, as even though 74 countries are expected to be represented at the games, the limited number of sports and less glitzy venue choices have reduced the event profile to a glorified varsity competition. At the same time, with the notion of a shared Commonwealth identity waning, the rising economic risk for potential host cities, and the event's reducing significance for top athletes, perhaps it is for the better that the Commonwealth Games are disbanded instead of being operated on life support. If necessary, replacement events can easily be added to the sporting calendar by sports governing bodies after evaluating their economic and athletic feasibility.