"India brings scale, youth, ambition, rich culture"
The Indian city of Ahmedabad has been confirmed as the host of the 2030 Commonwealth Games after members approved the bid at a General Assembly in Glasgow.
The decision secures the event’s centenary edition for one of India’s fastest-growing cities and marks a major moment for the Games as it looks to revive global interest.
Ahmedabad beat the Nigerian capital Abuja to win hosting rights for the milestone year.
It comes a century after the first Games took place in Hamilton, Canada, and more than a decade after India last staged the event in Delhi in 2010.
The move follows a turbulent period for the Commonwealth Games movement.
Glasgow will stage a pared-down version of the Games in 2026 after the Australian state of Victoria withdrew as host due to rising costs.
Those concerns continue to overshadow the future of the competition, with financial pressures and questions about relevance contributing to fewer nations putting forward bids. Proposals from Canada, South Africa and Australia for the 2030 event never progressed.
Victoria’s premier, Daniel Andrews, scrapped the 2026 Games last year, saying:
“What’s become clear is that the cost of hosting these Games in 2026 is not the $2.6bn which was budgeted and allocated. It is in fact at least $6bn, and could be as high as $7bn.”
His decision highlighted the growing financial risk for would-be hosts.
Organisers in Glasgow have committed to avoiding costs falling on the public. Their budget for next summer stands at £130-150m, with most of the funding coming from a £100m injection by the Commonwealth Games Federation.
The Games has long promoted itself as a unifying force across the 72 nations and territories of the Commonwealth.
It is often described as the “Friendly Games”, a label officials hope will retain meaning as the competition adapts to modern pressures.
Dr Donald Rukare, president of Commonwealth Sport, said it marks “the start of a new golden era”.
He added: “After a ‘Games reset’, we head to Glasgow 2026 in fantastic shape before setting our sights on Amdavad 2030 for a special Centenary edition.
“India brings scale, youth, ambition, rich culture, enormous sporting passion and relevance, and I’m delighted to report strong interest from a range of nations to host the 2034 Games and beyond.
“We start our next century for the Commonwealth Games in good health.”
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