The final of athletics’ Diamond League will be held alternately in Zurich and Brussels between 2024 and 2027, organisers announced today (Monday).
The decision has been made by the Diamond League Association’s General Assembly. Hosting rights for the two-day season finale – at which all 32 Diamond League champions are crowned – have been awarded to the Memorial van Damme meeting in Brussels for 2024 and 2026, and to Weltklasse Zurich for 2025 and 2027.
The General Assembly made the decision on the recommendation of the Quality Commission, which reviews applications to host the final. The Diamond League said that with the host city of the final now confirmed for each of the next five seasons this will ensure all stakeholders are able to plan beyond the short-term.
The final will be held in Zurich on September 7-8 this season, before moving out of Europe for the first time in the series’ history at the Prefontaine Classic in Eugene in 2023. Hayward Field, the revamped stadium in Eugene, Oregon that is due to host the postponed 2022 World Athletics Championships, was announced as the first non-European venue to stage the Diamond League final back in June.
Work on transforming the University of Oregon (UO) facility into an elite track and field stadium was completed in June 2020.
Zurich was also the host of the Diamond League final last year, becoming the first city to hold it as a two-day event featuring all 32 disciplines. As in 2021, future finals held in Zurich will be split between city and stadium.
Day one will see selected Diamond League champions crowned at the Sechseläutenplatz in Zurich city centre, while the remaining disciplines will be held at the Stadion Letzigrund on day two.
In both Brussels and Eugene, both decisive days will take place at the stadium, the former at the Belgian capital’s King Baudouin II Stadium, and the latter at the newly renovated Hayward Field. The Memorial Van Damme meet will celebrate its 50th anniversary when it hosts the final in 2026.
Both the Brussels and the Zurich meetings have a wealth of experience in hosting the showcase event, having been joint hosts between 2010 and 2019, when the final was split between two separate meetings.
