UK Athletics chiefs have submitted a bid for the 2029 World Championships, with September its preferred month to stage the event, and hope that government intervention can resolve a dispute with West Ham United over vacating their stadium.
World Athletics — which will also consider bids from Rome, Munich, Nairobi and possibly an Indian city to host its 2029 and 2031 events — now wants the World Championships to mark the conclusion to every non-Olympic track and field season.
West Ham would have to give up the London Stadium for about three weeks if the UKA bid is successful. An agreement, though, has not been struck with the Premier League club, who would have to play a minimum of two consecutive games away from home.
Mo Farah won two gold medals in the London Stadium at the 2012 OlympicsStu Forster/Getty
Central to the issue is where the power lies. West Ham believe a clause in their tenancy agreement gives them priority to use the stadium during the football season. However, athletics bosses claim contractual obligations require a venue built for the 2012 Olympics, and run by London Stadium LLP — as a subsidiary of the Greater London Authority — to allow a limited number of global sports events to take precedence.
There have been discussions between the main stakeholders, involving senior Downing Street officials as well as the Premier League. The bid book, though, was submitted on Thursday with athletics officials hopeful that a compromise can be reached that will bring the World Championships back to London for the first time since 2017.
They have until August to finalise their bid before a decision will be made at the World Athletics Council, which takes place in September in Budapest after the inaugural Ultimate Championships.
The GB team will bring back more medals to that stadium than west ham have seen in their entire history 🫢🫶🏼😂 https://t.co/iCE3ynTA9B
— KnH (@keelyhodgkinson) March 25, 2026
Last July, the government announced it would provide the financial backing for a bid, with £35million from the treasury and £10million from the mayor of London’s office guaranteed.
It is possible some of that cash could be paid to West Ham as compensation for their inconvenience.
The Times understands that the club have discussed the feasibility of moving fixtures with the Premier League, the English Football League and Uefa, which demonstrates a willingness to explore the possibility of accommodating the World Championships.
West Ham are believed to have discussed moving fixtures to make the stadium availableAlamy
However, if the club were to be relegated to the EFL — West Ham are 18th in the Premier League table — it could create a problem given the extra number of games that would be affected. At present, the respective organisations have been unable to provide any guarantee that their fixture list could be adjusted.
Stadium workers need about four or five days either side of the nine-day World Championships to prepare the venue for athletics, and in the EFL that could mean West Ham would have to play as many as four consecutive matches away from home.
West Ham remaining in the Premier League would make things easier. An international break in September and a possible tweak to the athletics schedule — starting on a Wednesday and running until the following Friday, therefore taking place over one weekend rather than two — could be proposed to lessen the impact.
Coe appealed to other UK cities to accommodate a bid if no agreement is reached with West HamAdam Warner/Getty
On Thursday, the club declined to comment, but it is believed their position remains unchanged after issuing a statement on the matter last month. They said they “remain in a constructive dialogue with London Stadium regarding the potential dates for the proposed bid and await further information”.
West Ham added: “Any decisions remain subject to the club’s overriding priority clause, a contractual right ensuring West Ham United games take priority during the football season.”
It was also only last month that Lord Coe, the World Athletics president, hinted that a failure to guarantee a date in September 2029 could be a deal-breaker.
“London is clearly not the only bid out there,” he said. “All I would say is that I would hope that there is recognition that outside the Olympic Games and the [football] World Cup, this is the third-largest sporting gathering.
“I do ask cities to try to accommodate us. There has to be a recognition that it’s a big global sport. This is not a gimme to anyone. But we have a pretty clear, stated position that we want our World Championships to finish as the conclusion of a season.”