Northern Games bid backed by Olympic and Paralympic stars

A growing coalition of British Olympic and Paralympic athletes has thrown its weight behind a proposed bid to bring the Games to the north of England, insisting the region possesses sporting passion that sets it apart from anywhere else in the country.

More than 30 current and former Team GB competitors have signed an open letter of support for the Northern Games initiative, which is being developed by a consortium of city leaders and regional mayors spanning Manchester, Leeds, Newcastle and Sheffield. The letter calls on the government to fund a formal feasibility study before the end of 2025.

Who’s backing the bid

The list of signatories includes Paralympic sprint champion Sophie Kamlish, former Olympic cycling gold medallist Ed Clancy, and several athletes who competed at Paris 2024. The campaign describes the north as having “a passion for sport like no other place”, pointing to sold-out arenas, grassroots club membership figures and strong volunteering numbers as evidence.

It’s not just the stars themselves driving this. Coaches, performance directors and retired administrators have all added their names, giving the campaign a breadth that organisers say demonstrates genuine cross-sport buy-in rather than a handful of famous faces lending their brand.

What the bid would actually involve

The proposal envisages spreading competition venues across six cities and five counties, with an athletes’ village anchored in Greater Manchester. Organisers estimate the Games would require around £4.2 billion in public and private investment, though they argue the economic return over a 15-year window could exceed £9 billion.

Still, the numbers alone don’t tell the full story. Supporters argue the real value lies in infrastructure legacy — new transport links, upgraded sports facilities and an estimated 18,000 permanent jobs created during the build phase.

A spokesperson for the Northern Games consortium said: “This isn’t about putting on a show for two weeks. It’s about giving communities across the north something permanent, something that changes what’s possible for young people growing up here.”

The political hurdles ahead

But the path to an official bid is far from straightforward. The International Olympic Committee requires a national Olympic committee to formally express interest, meaning UK Sport and the British Olympic Association would need to back the project. Neither organisation has commented publicly yet.

And there’s the question of timing. The IOC is already in exploratory talks with several cities for the 2036 Summer Games. A Northern England bid, if it received government backing tomorrow, would almost certainly be targeting 2040 at the earliest.

What comes next

Campaigners plan to present their case to MPs at a Westminster reception next month, with regional mayors expected to attend. They want a government commitment to funding a £3 million feasibility study by autumn.

Whether ministers bite remains to be seen. But with 30-plus Olympians and Paralympians publicly onside, the Northern Games bid is no longer easy to dismiss.