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Agence France-Presse

Malaysia on Friday decided against hosting the 2026 Commonwealth Games because of the cost, the government said, in a fresh blow to an event seen as outdated by some.
The decision, made at a cabinet meeting chaired by Prime Minister Anwar Ibrahim, follows the withdrawal of the Australian state of Victoria last year.
“The Ministry of Youth and Sports today announced the government’s decision not to accept an offer from the Commonwealth Games Federation (CGF) to host the 2026 Commonwealth Games,” minister Hannah Yeoh said in a statement.
The CGF is scrambling to find a host after Victoria withdrew last July because of soaring costs.
The CGF offered Malaysia and other potential hosts 100 million pounds (US$125 million) to step in with just over two years to go until the Games are supposed to take place.
But the Malaysian government said the offer was “not expected to be able to cover the entire cost of organising a large-scale sports event”, Yeoh said.
“The government wants to focus on the development of sports as well as the welfare and well-being of the people,” she added.
‘Glorifying the British’? Malaysians oppose hosting 2026 Commonwealth Games
Victoria’s sudden move, and 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.
The CGF earlier this month hailed Malaysia’s “fantastic track record”, the country having staged the Games – which mostly includes former British colonies – in 1998.
But the CGF also suggested that Malaysia was not the only country it had approached to host the Games.
Singapore recently said it was “assessing the feasibility” of the CGF’s proposal.
The wealthy city state also holds the Formula One night race annually and will be staging the World Aquatics Championships in 2025.
The prospect of Malaysia stepping in to host the Games had sparked fierce debate.
Mohamad Norza Zakaria, president of the Commonwealth Games Association of Malaysia, had called it a “once-in-a-lifetime opportunity” that could put Malaysia back on the sporting map.
Poverty looms over Malaysia’s elderly as low pay bites back in retirement
But doubts emerged last week over the idea after current and former senior officials expressed reservations.
Khairy Jamaluddin, a former youth and sports minister, rubbished the idea and called it “reckless” because the Games are coming up fast, leaving little time for planning.
Any host would need at least four years to upgrade venues, plan sponsorship and set up infrastructure, he said.
“The Commonwealth Games is not a significant, marquee sporting event,” he added.
“As far as multi-sports Games are concerned, it is nowhere near the Olympics or even the Asian Games in terms of participation, exposure and returns,” Khairy said.


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Malaysia

Malaysia rejects offer to host 2026 Commonwealth Games over cost

Fireworks erupt over the Alexander Stadium during the closing ceremony for the 2022 Commonwealth Games in Birmingham, Britain. Photo: AFP

Malaysians feel the pinch as the ‘shringgit’ returns – and there’s no quick fix for PM Anwar

A worker arranges packaged fish crackers at a store in Terengganu. Ordinary Malaysians have been hit by the ringgit’s drop in value, as the cost of shopping surges with each depreciation. Photo: Bloomberg

Street food vendors serve a customer in Kuala Lumpur. Malaysia’s ringgit has been among Asia ’s worst performers for more than two years now. Photo: Bloomberg

The weak ringgit is fast becoming a political problem for Malaysian Prime Minister Anwar Ibrahim. Photo: Reuters

Pedestrians walk along a road in Kuala Lumpur. Photo: Bloomberg

People walk in front of the Petronas Towers in Kuala Lumpur. Despite holding a parliamentary supermajority, Anwar has struggled to draw support from the country’s Malay majority. Photo: AP

Malaysians face retirement in poverty as lifelong low pay bites back in their autumn years

An elderly Malaysian woman waits to cast her vote at a polling station in Kuala Lumpur during the general election in 2018. Photo: AFP

A man displays bananas outside his shop in in Kuala Lumpur, with Malaysia’s iconic Petronas Twin Towers in the background. Retirees in the Malaysian capital say their savings are being gobbled up fast. Photo: EPA-EFE

A resident walks near a barbed wire fence closing off a community in Kuala Lumpur under an enhanced movement control order in 2021. The pandemic caused job losses that drained Malaysians’ savings. Photo: Xinhua

A stack of 50 ringgit banknotes are seen at a currency exchange store in Kuala Lumpur. Photo: Bloomberg

Malaysian Prime Minister Anwar Ibrahim has said the government will need to spend 50 billion ringgit this year along to service its debt. Photo: dpa

Malaysians could pay more for vegetables as worker exodus sparks supply fears: ‘locals don’t want the jobs’

A vendor sells vegetables at a night market in Langkawi, Malaysia. Photo: Shutterstock

Migrant workers at a vegetable farm in Cameron Highlands, the largest vegetable-producing region in the Malaysian peninsula. Photo: AFP 

A vendor sells vegetables and fruits in Pahang, Malaysia. Photo: Shutterstock

News

Asia

Southeast Asia

The government said the US$125 million offer was ‘not expected to be able to cover the entire cost of organising a large-scale sports event’
The Commonwealth Games Federation is scrambling to find a host after Australia’s Victoria state withdrew last year because of soaring costs


The government said the US$125 million offer was ‘not expected to be able to cover the entire cost of organising a large-scale sports event’.


Commonwealth Games

Anwar Ibrahim

Commonwealth

Victoria

Malaysia rejects offer to host 2026 Commonwealth Games over cost

The government said the US$125 million offer was ‘not expected to be able to cover the entire cost of organising a large-scale sports event’ The Commonwealth Games Federation is scrambling to find a host after Australia’s Victoria state withdrew last year because of soaring costs

The government said the US$125 million offer was ‘not expected to be able to cover the entire cost of organising a large-scale sports event’

The Commonwealth Games Federation is scrambling to find a host after Australia’s Victoria state withdrew last year because of soaring costs