Glasgow Commonwealth Games 2026: Start date, schedule, sports and how to watch
The Glasgow Commonwealth Games begin on July 23. Here’s the schedule, sports, Team GB stars and how to watch the 2026 event.
The Glasgow Commonwealth Games begin on Thursday, July 23, with athletes from across the Commonwealth gathering in Scotland for 10 days of sporting competition.
Glasgow is hosting the event for the second time ever, having previously staged the Games in 2014. The 2026 edition will bring together some of the biggest names in international sport, including athletes representing England, Scotland, Wales and Northern Ireland.
The event is one of the world’s longest-running major multi-sport competitions and, almost a century after the first edition, continues to offer athletes the chance to compete for Commonwealth medals on an international stage.
Here’s everything you need to know about the Commonwealth Games start date, schedule, sports, leading British and Northern Irish athletes and how to watch the action.
When do the Commonwealth Games start?
The 2026 Commonwealth Games officially begin on Thursday, July 23, and will run for 10 days, with the competition coming to a closeon Sunday, August 2.
The Commonwealth Games will take place across venues in Glasgow, with Scotstoun Stadium among the key locations, particularly for athletics.
The opening ceremony will also take place on Thursday, marking the official beginning of the event in Glasgow.
Commonwealth Games 2026 schedule
The Commonwealth Games schedule is spread across a total of ten sports, with competition getting underway in the form of bowls and para bowls before a wide range of events take place over the following days.
Sports fans will be able to tune into a number of different events and formats.
Here are the main sports on the Glasgow 2026 Commonwealth schedule:
- Athletics
- Boxing
- 3×3 basketball
- 3×3 wheelchair basketball
- Artistic gymnastics
- Judo
- Netball
- Swimming and para swimming
- Weightlifting
- Track cycling and para track cycling
Bowls and para bowls get things going on July 23, before the first 3×3 basketball and wheelchair basketball matches follow on the next day.
The programme then will have swimming, gymnastics, boxing, para powerlifting, athletics, judo, netball, weightlifting and cycling before the final events conclude on August 2.
The Glasgow edition is smaller than previous Commonwealth Games after Scotland stepped in to host the event at relatively short notice. The city was confirmed as host in 2024 after Victoria, Australia, withdrew from its original plans to stage the Games, leaving the less time than usual to get prepared.
How are the Commonwealth Games different from the Olympics?
The Commonwealth Games and Olympic Games share many similarities, but also significant differences.
Both are major multi-sport events held every four years, with top athletes competing across a wide range of disciplines for gold, silver and bronze medals.
The key difference is that the Commonwealth Games are restricted to nations and territories that form part of the Commonwealth, an association whose membership is largely made up of countries with historical links to the British Empire.
The sporting programmes also differ as the Olympics have sports such as athletics, swimming and gymnastics, while the Commonwealth Games traditionally feature events that are not part of the Olympic programme. Bowls and netball are two of the most notable examples.
The first Commonwealth Games took place in 1930, making the event one of the oldest major multi-sport competitions in the world outside the Olympics.
Which teams do British athletes represent?
Unlike at the Olympic Games, athletes from the United Kingdom do not compete under one single Team GB banner at the Commonwealth Games. Instead, most competitors represent one of four separate teams:
- Team England
- Team Scotland
- Team Wales
- Team Northern Ireland
The Crown Dependencies of the Isle of Man, Guernsey and Jersey also have their own teams, unlike at the Olympics, while British Overseas Territories such as Gibraltar can compete separately.
This is just one of the things that make the Commonwealth Games a unique event for British sport, with athletes who might normally compete together at the Olympics under the Team GB banner instead going up against each other.
Team GB athletes to watch
These Commonwealth Games will see a number of top Team GB athletes participating. One of the biggest names in the pool will be Adam Ramsay-Peaty, who represents Team England.
Ramsay-Peaty is a three-time Olympic champion, and will compete in his specialist breaststroke events as he targets another Commonwealth title.
Team Northern Ireland will be represented by Jack McMillan, who is a Paris 2024 gold medallist in the 4x200m freestyle relay. McMillan will also face a number of familiar names in the individual 200m freestyle. They include Scotland’s Duncan Scott, Wales’ Matt Richards and England’s Tom Dean and James Guy.
Emma Finucane is one of the leading names in cycling for Team Wales after winning the Olympic team sprint gold in Paris and previously claiming a Commonwealth medal.
Scotland’s athletics team will be headlined by Laura Muir, who is set to compete in the 5,000m. Her compatriot Jake Wightman will also attract significant attention as he takes on newly crowned mile world-record holder Josh Kerr in Glasgow.
How can you watch the Glasgow Commonwealth Games?
TNT Sports will provide extensive live coverage of the event, with more than 600 hours of programming planned throughout the Games.
Every medal event will be available live through HBO Max, with subscriptions starting from £4.99 per month for the Basic with Ads plan.
Free-to-air viewers will also be able to watch daily highlights on Channel 5, which has partnered with TNT Sports. The opening ceremony will be broadcast live on Thursday.
For radio coverage, talkSPORT will provide live updates throughout the Games, while BBC Sounds will also carry coverage and updates through BBC Radio 5 Live.
While the Commonwealth Games might not attract the audiences of the Olympic Games, what it will guarantee is a packed schedule of elite athletes competing for medals, meaning that Glasgow 2026 promises to be another exciting summer sporting event over the next ten days.
