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Get match fit for 2014 Commonwealth Games

Find out how to prepare for the 2014 Commonwealth Games opportunitity, and what support is available for Scottish businesses.

The Commonwealth Games, which will take place from 23 July to 3 August 2014 in Glasgow, will be the biggest sporting event ever held on Scottish soil. 

Scotland will host up to 6,500 athletes and officials from 71 Commonwealth countries across 17 sports and will welcome many thousands of visitors and spectators.

1,000,000 tickets are expected to be sold for 250 medal events, and footage will be beamed across the world to Commonwealth countries who, between them, account for about a third of the world’s population.

What’s in it for Scotland?

Hosting the Commonwealth Games will showcase Glasgow and Scotland to a global audience and will bring particular benefits for tourism, with both additional holidaymakers and business travellers.

Research commissioned following the Manchester 2002 Games confirmed that they generated some 6,000 permanent jobs in the North West region. 

The findings also suggested that nearly 30 million people would consider Manchester and the North West as a possible business and visitor destination, and that 300,000 extra visitors would visit the city and region each year.

The organisers of the Melbourne Games in 2006 estimated that direct Games expenditure, along with tourism, construction and other commercial activity generated by the Games, amounted to some $1.6 billion. The higher than expected economic return was due to increased levels of international visitors, with more than 100,000 tourists visiting Victoria for the Games.

In addition to the main Glasgow venues, the Games will also be using four competition venues at satellite locations outside the city, bringing further opportunities for businesses located in these areas.

  • The Barry Buddon Shooting Centre near Carnoustie
  • The Jackton Shooting Centre at East Kilbride
  • The Royal Commonwealth Pool in Edinburgh
  • Strathclyde Country Park

How can I start preparing?

Although Glasgow 2014 is still almost four years away, there are some practical steps which you can start to take now to maximise the benefits the Games will bring:

Check out the official website of the Glasgow Games, to keep up to date with the latest developments and information in the run-up to the event.

Start featuring the Glasgow 2014 logo and promotional messages on your website and marketing materials. Guidelines for doing this are available on the Glasgow 2014 site.

Glasgow Business Portal

Register on the ‘Commonwealth Games Business Portal’. The site gives businesses of all sizes the opportunity to find out more about and compete for Games-related contracts.

Business Gateway

Check out Scottish Enterprise’s ‘Tender for Glasgow 2014 Commonwealth Games contracts’ guide at Business Gateway. 

The booklet will explain how your business can tender for Commonwealth Games contracts. 

A dedicated Glasgow 2014 Business Portal Helpline has also been set up to deal with queries relating to the tendering process, on 0845 272 2014.

Business Club Scotland

Register with Business Club Scotland, an initiative designed to help businesses capitalise on the opportunities generated by major events in Scotland. 

The club, which provides access to marketing, networking and business development opportunities, is open to all Scottish companies and is free to register.

Glasgow Service with Style Intiative

Developed by Glasgow Service with Style in partnership with local tourism businesses, the programme aims to provide businesses with the tools required to enhance the customer service experience for all visitors to Glasgow in the run-up to and during the Commonwealth Games.