Regional Victoria will not host the 2026 Commonwealth Games with premier Daniel Andrews this morning announcing the cost associating with the event was too high.
An initial budget of $2.6 billion was pledged, but Premier Andrews said the cost had blown out to more than $6 billion.
“That’s well and truly too much for a 12-day sporting event,” he said.
“I think all Victorians would agree that more than $6 billion is just too much. I’ve made a lot of difficult decisions in this job. This is not one of them. We’re simply not going to invest that money.”
The state government will push ahead with legacy projects such as the construction of gymnastics and aquatics centres in Waurn Ponds and Armstrong Creek.
The Games were expected to bring 100,000 people to the region according to Minister for Commonwealth Games delivery Jacinta Allan.
In April Minister for Commonwealth Games legacy Harriet Shing said the 2026 Games would host nine sports in Geelong and is estimated to contribute more than $3 billion to Victoria’s economy.
