Liverpool mayor Joe Anderson has revealed that the city could bid to host the 2026 Commonwealth Games.
In a letter written to Culture Secretary John Whittingdale, Anderson, who is seeking re-election next month, revealed that he wanted the Merseyside city to follow recent British hosts Manchester and Glasgow in staging the event.
"Given our highly successful year as European Capital of Culture in 2008, the city has an acute sense of how culture and sport can be catalysed for their regenerative potential, as well as a track record in rising to the occasion in delivering a high-profile, large scale programme of events," Anderson wrote, according to the Liverpool Echo.
"With that in mind, it is my strong conviction that Liverpool, as a multi-ethnic city with strong connections to so many Commonwealth nations, is a fitting host for the Games.
"Also, as a cornerstone of the 'Northern Powerhouse' initiative, the potential benefits of hosting the Games would disperse widely around the Liverpool City-Region as well as the wider North-West of England."
The Games were held in Glasgow two years ago and will take place at Australia's Gold Coast in 2018 and Durban in South Africa four years later.
Pascal Lemesre
