The 2026 European Athletics Championships have been awarded to Birmingham on the first day of the European Athletics Council meeting in Warsaw.

It’s the first time that a British city has been assigned the Championships although Birmingham has staged a plethora of high profile events in recent years, including the 2007 European Athletics Indoor Championships, the 2003 and 2018 World Athletics Indoor Championships and the 2022 Commonwealth Games.

The 2026 European Athletics Championships will take place in the recently rebuilt Alexander Stadium, the venue for a sell-out athletics programme at the Commonwealth Games this summer. European Athletics President, Dobromir Karamarinov, said:

“I am absolutely delighted to announce that we have awarded the 2026 European Athletics Championships to Birmingham.

“The British public has a huge appreciation for world class athletics and the British crowds are among the most knowledgeable, passionate and enthusiastic anywhere in the world. We saw this recently at the Commonwealth Games where the stands were at full capacity, even for the morning sessions.

“We are sure that Europe’s best athletes will be competing in a full stadium every day and in front of a huge television audience not just in Europe but globally as well. We really couldn’t ask for a better host city and venue for our showcase event in 2026.”

With 124 gold medals, Great Britain and Northern Ireland are the most successful nation in European Athletics Championships history and British athletes have provided many iconic moments along the way. Soeaking about the announcement, UK Atheletic’s Chief Executive, Jack Buckner added:

"We are delighted and honoured that we have been awarded the privilege of hosting the European Athletics Championships in 2026 in Birmingham. It is wonderful news for athletics and benefits the whole of the UK in demonstrating our ability to host major events across the whole country.

"UKA has held a long time wish to deliver this event and we thank European Athletics for its faith in entrusting us with its most important competition."

The next edition of the European Athletics Championships will take place in Rome in 2024.