The North of England could play host to the Olympic and Paralympic Games for the first time in history, as Northern Mayors and Leaders today set out a clear proposition for a future UK bid to be anchored in the North of England, although one mayor that wasn’t on board was London’s Sadiq Khan.
The Great North – a collaboration of mayors and leaders across the North – has written a joint letter to the Secretary of State for Culture, Media and Sport Lisa Nandy, calling on Government to commit in principle that any future UK Olympic and Paralympic bid is based in the North and for a fairer redistribution of major events across the country.
The North already has many of the foundations in place to deliver a world-class games, including elite sporting venues, major stadia and arenas, established transport hubs, accommodation capacity, and world-class broadcast and creative capability.
The letter comes following a call from the Heseltine Institute for the North of England to host a multi-city games, citing the International Olympic Committee (IOC)’s growing support for multi-city, region-wide bids, making a Northern England Games both credible and timely.
The North’s proven track record of hosting celebrated global sporting events includes the Commonwealth Games in Manchester, the EURO 2028 football championships, the Great North Run, Rugby League World Cups, The Open, Ashes Tests, the Grand National, and major football tournaments, while the Tour de France will be hosted in Cumbria, Liverpool City Region and Yorkshire in 2027, and the World Snooker Championships in Sheffield is a regular feature in the North’s sporting calendar, while major cultural include the Hull UK City of Culture in 2017 and Bradford in 2025, the Eurovision Song Contest in Liverpool, and major cultural showcases including the MOBO Awards, MTV European Music Awards and the BRITs in Manchester recently.
Northern mayors and leaders believe a Games anchored in the North would represent a “once-in-a-generation opportunity to accelerate regeneration, rebalance the economy, and reset international perceptions of England.”
It could act as a catalyst for long-term investment in transport, skills, housing, grassroots sport and cultural infrastructure, with benefits lasting well beyond the closing ceremony, they added.
In the letter, mayors and leaders have asked government to:
- Agree in principle that any future UK Olympic and Paralympic bid is anchored in the North of England
- Support proportionate feasibility and preparatory work in partnership with Northern Mayors and Leaders
- Align early on the legacy objectives of any bid, ensuring long-term benefit for Northern communities, including a plan to redistribute more major events to the North as a catalyst for jobs, regeneration and attracting more visitors.
The Mayors and Leaders of The Great North said they stand ready to work with Government to shape a proposal that is credible, deliverable and transformative – not just for the North, but for the country as a whole.
Chair of The Great North and North East Mayor Kim McGuinness said: “The North of England has a sporting history and prowess like no other place, and we are united in our belief that our region could host a box office, world-leading Olympic Games.
“Bringing the Olympics to the UK would unite the North and the whole nation, bringing people together and unleashing a groundswell of pride in our places. The Olympics create a legacy like no other, with game-changing investment in jobs, regeneration and transport, creating opportunity for people across the North.
“As Mayors and leaders we are ready to deliver, now we need national Government and sporting bodies to match our ambition: The Olympics would be our moment for the North to stand tall on the international stage.”
All of the North’s mayors added their support to the calls, with key comments including:
- Tracy Brabin, Mayor of West Yorkshire, who said: “A Northern Olympics would help us showcase our sporting prowess and proud record of producing champions. It would be a real catalyst for investment, jobs, opportunity, and true national renewal. We have the venues, we have the talent, and we have the ambition – let’s bring the Olympics to the North and prove that when we’re backed, we deliver.”
- Mayor of Greater Manchester Andy Burnham: “Hosting the Olympic and Paralympic Games would be a defining moment for the North and we are confident our bid would make for a compelling proposition. Much of the infrastructure is already in place, our facilities are second-to-none, and we have a track record of hosting major global events. It would also be a powerful opportunity to unlock future growth, building on the North’s existing strengths and accelerating investment. For Greater Manchester, the 2002 Commonwealth Games marked a real turning point. It sparked transformative regeneration and economic growth, changing how people felt about our city region and how the world viewed us.
“An Olympic and Paralympic Games would deliver a similar impact on a much bigger scale, through long-term investment which transforms our region and leaves a legacy far beyond the Games.”
- Liverpool’s Steve Rotheram: “From Eurovision to The Open, EURO 2028, The Grand National and the Tour de France, the North has been warming up on the world stage for years. A homegrown Olympics would be our moment to go for gold.
“With the government’s commitment to invest in Northern Powerhouse Rail, strong partnerships across the North, and a region brimming with energy, creativity and ambition, together we have the potential to host a Games that the world would never forget. A Games rooted in the North would be a once-in-a-lifetime chance to bring the Olympics closer to ordinary communities that have too often felt like they’ve been left out of the national story. Just imagine how it could inspire a whole generation of kids in Bootle, Barnsley and Byker who deserve to feel that buzz on their doorstep.”
Former Olympian Sir Brendan Foster CBE, founder of the Great North Run, added: “I wholeheartedly support the mayors’ ambition for the North of England. However, this is about more than an Olympic bid. It’s about delivering a fairer distribution of major international sporting events across the country.
“Obviously iconic sporting occasions like Wimbledon, Royal Ascot, Lords Test matches and the London Marathon, are rightly celebrated in the nation’s capital, but when the government is financing hosting global sporting events, they should have a balanced national approach as their guiding principle. The North of England should play a central role in hosting world and European level football, rugby, cricket and multi sport events, and should clearly have a strong presence at the decision making table. That is only fair and represents the significant interest and contribution the North has always and will always make to British sport.”
One dissenting mayor, however, was London’s Sadiq Khan, who insisted the capital should be part of any future UK Olympic bid, despite having hosted the games just 14 years ago.
A spokesperson for Khan said: “London is the sporting capital of the world and the Mayor has openly expressed his ambition for the capital to be part of a future Olympic and Paralympic Games. Sadiq believes that a potential country-wide bid, using all the assets we have in the UK, including the publicly-owned London Stadium would deliver the very best possible Olympics.
“Using London’s existing world-class infrastructure would help deliver the greenest and most sustainable Games, as well as unlocking huge economic growth both here in London and around the country. Not including the capital in an Olympics bid would be a missed opportunity, and mean our country fails to unleash the full benefits of a UK-wide games.”
Make of that what you will.
Image: Eric Salard/Creative Commons
