⁠Malaysia Offered US $120m to Host 2026 Commonwealth Games

Malaysia has been offered US $120 million to hold the Commonwealth Games again after Australia withdrew as host for the 2026 edition last July because of rising costs.

Malaysia’s Olympic Council received a formal invitation last month from the Commonwealth Games Federation, CGF, to replace the Australian state of Victoria.

The federation is scrambling to find a host after Victoria’s abrupt pull-out, and said it was in “advanced discussions” with potential hosts.

The lack of an obvious alternative triggered debate about the future of the Games, which take place every four years and were last held in Birmingham in 2022.

It has been cancelled only twice, in 1942 and 1946, because of World War II.

President of the Jamaica Olympic Association, Christopher Samuda, says money would support “the local delivery and legacy planning” of the 2026 Games.

Malaysia has hosted the Games once before, in Kuala Lumpur, the country’s capital, in 1998.

It was the first time the multi-sport event was held in an Asian country and the first time team sports were included.

Samuda says the chance to host in 2026 was a once in a lifetime opportunity to build on the success of 1998 and put the country back on to the world sporting map.

Christopher Samuda.