Two Four Six Sports to aid delivery of Birmingham’s European Athletics Championships

Two Four Six Sports has been appointed to initiate the delivery of the 2026 European Athletics Championships in the English city of Birmingham, one of the key legacy events for the redeveloped Alexander Stadium.

Stephen Brown, as founder of Two Four Six Sports, will deliver these services in his position as interim chief operating officer of the Championships.

Brown previously served as chief operating officer for the postponed Rugby League World Cup 2021, which was held last year in England, and was instrumental in the delivery of the first-ever staging of simultaneous men’s, women’s and wheelchair games in the tournament’s history.

Birmingham was awarded hosting rights for the 2026 edition of the European Athletics Championships back in November. The Championships will mark the first time that a British city has hosted the event and the award came after Alexander Stadium served as the main venue for the 2022 Commonwealth Games.

Alexander Stadium hosted a sold-out athletics programme during the Commonwealth Games. The venue underwent a £72m (€82.7m/$89.6m) revamp to make it Games-ready, with its permanent capacity increasing from 12,700 to 18,000. Temporary seating meant that Alexander Stadium could host up to 30,000 spectators during the Games.

Brown said: “I am very grateful to Birmingham City Council, UK Athletics and UK Sport for giving me this opportunity and putting their trust in me.

“I am enthusiastic to be able to learn and work in a new sport in what is an exciting time for mega events in the UK and Birmingham and I look forward to building on the recent success of the Commonwealth Games.”

Cllr Ian Ward, Leader of Birmingham City Council, added: “For a major international sporting event like this, it’s essential we have someone of Stephen’s calibre on board.

“He played a crucial role in the success of the 2021 Rugby League World Cup and he knows exactly what needs to be done. I’m delighted to welcome Stephen to Birmingham and look forward to working with him as we further implement our 10-year Major Sporting Events Strategy.”