With two years to go until Birmingham and the wider region hosts the 2022 Commonwealth Games – the world’s biggest multi-sports event outside the Olympic Games – there will be plenty of stirring sporting drama in the West Midlands over the next 12 months. The year kicks off with Arena Birmingham welcoming four of netball’s top five countries – including England – at the Vitality Netball Nations Cup 2020 (22 January).
The Gymnastics World Cup (Arena Birmingham, 28 March) provides fans with the chance to watch the UK’s only Olympic qualification event. On the football pitch, Wolverhampton Wanderers continue their first European campaign for 40 years and West Bromwich Albion will push for Championship glory.
In July, Coventry is the host city for the British Transplant Games (University of Warwick, 30 July – 2 August) and Edgbaston Stadium welcomes the first matches of new domestic cricket tournament The Hundred.
One of the West Midlands’ most famous sons Ozzy Osbourne toasts five decades of performing with his farewell No More Tours 2 concert in his home region at the Resorts World Arena in Solihull (31 October).
The West Midlands has long been a favourite for event organisers thanks to its large number of bed spaces and the breadth and depth of its venues. More than 10,000 delegates will visit Birmingham when the Conservative Party hosts its seventh autumn conference in the city since 2008 (4-7 October).
