Alexander Stadium: home of the 2026 European Athletics Championships

For one week in August 2026, Alexander Stadium in Perry Barr became the centre of European athletics. It was the first time a British city had ever hosted the European Athletics Championships, and the stadium that carried it off is the same one built for the 2022 Commonwealth Games, named after a Birmingham athletics official from over a century ago.

A stadium named after a Birchfield Harrier

Alexander Stadium takes its name from William Whiteway Alexander (1852 to 1933), a driving force behind Birchfield Harriers from the 1880s onwards. As club secretary, he helped grow Birchfield into one of the country's leading athletics clubs and pushed for a women's section in the 1920s, decades before that was common practice. The stadium opened on the Perry Barr site in 1976, and Birchfield Harriers have trained and competed there ever since. UK Athletics also keeps its offices in the East Stand.

From a £72 million rebuild to Commonwealth Games centre stage

The stadium visitors see today is largely the result of a £72 million redevelopment, completed in April 2022 in time for the Birmingham Commonwealth Games. The rebuild took permanent seating from around 12,700 to 18,000, with extra temporary stands able to push capacity to 40,000 for major events. At its heart is a nine-lane, World Athletics Category 1-certified track, alongside a separate six-lane warm-up track and throws field. More on the stadium's facilities is available from the venue itself.

Alexander Stadium hosted the opening and closing ceremonies of the 2022 Commonwealth Games, along with every athletics and para-athletics session, cementing its place as the largest purpose-built athletics venue in the UK.

Birmingham 2026: Europe's biggest names come to Perry Barr

In August 2026, that same track hosted the 27th European Athletics Championships, held from 10 to 16 August. It was the first time a British city had staged the event. 1,645 athletes from 49 nations took part across 50 events, with the marathon and race walks run through Birmingham city centre while everything else played out at Alexander Stadium. The European Athletics guide to the championships has the full breakdown of events and schedule.

The entry list read like a who's who of the sport: multiple Olympic champions and ten reigning world champions from 2025 all competed at Perry Barr.

Results and records at Alexander Stadium

The track proved fast all week. Karsten Warholm ran a championship record 46.63 in the men's 400m hurdles, Armand Duplantis cleared a championship record 6.15m in the pole vault, and Massimo Stano set a European record of 2:56:49 in the men's marathon race walk. Jakob Ingebrigtsen won the men's 5000m in 13:15.29, his seventh European Championship gold medal.

Great Britain, competing on home soil, had plenty to celebrate too. Amy Hunt won the women's 100m in 11.00 seconds, and Georgia Hunter Bell took the women's 1500m title in 4:07.78. The host nation finished the championships with 19 medals, including 9 golds, second only to Italy in the final medal table.

Visit Alexander Stadium

Alexander Stadium is listed here under its Walsall Road, Perry Barr address, alongside its separate indoor community track. See the full track listing for opening times, facilities and how to get there, or browse the rest of the athletics tracks in the West Midlands.