Hamilton has decided against bidding for the 2030 centenary Commonwealth Games but the decision could be overturned ©Getty Images

Councillors in Hamilton have narrowly voted against bidding for the 2030 centenary Commonwealth Games but the decision could be overturned.

Officials in the Canadian city, which hosted the very first Games in 1930, voted seven to six not to pursue a bid.

But the city's Mayor Fred Eisenberger, who missed the meeting because he was on a business trip to Colombia, could call for a new vote at a meeting next Wednesday (September 13). 

He supports the idea of bidding. 

Two other Councillors, Tom Jackson and Robert Pasuta, were also missing from the vote.

Hamilton had proposed sending a letter to Commonwealth Games Canada to express a non-binding interest in hosting the 100th anniversary of the Commonwealth Games. 

Hamilton hosted the 1930 event when it was called the British Empire Games.

"This will be a distraction," said Councillor Sam Merulla. 

"This will bring divisiveness. 

"This will take our focus away from what we actually need to do. 

"I think we should shut this down now."

Problems over Tim Hortons Field, built for the 2015 Pan American Games staged in Toronto, contributed to opposition to Hamilton bidding for the 2030 Commonwealth Games ©Getty Images
Problems over Tim Hortons Field, built for the 2015 Pan American Games staged in Toronto, contributed to opposition to Hamilton bidding for the 2030 Commonwealth Games ©Getty Images

There is opposition in Hamilton to bidding for the Commonwealth Games because of problems with Tim Hortons Field, built at a cost of CAD$145 million (£91 million/$119 million/€99 million) to stage football matches during the 2015 Pan American Games which Toronto hosted.

Since the Stadium opened in 2014 there have been numerous issues regarding the quality of the construction. 

The City of Hamilton has so far spent upwards of CAD$2.5 million (£1.6 million/$2 million/€1.7 million) in fixes and safety repairs, including replacing rain-damaged television screens, faulty baby-changing tables, installing draft beer lines, improving ventilation, leaky expansion joints and faulty floor drains.

"We are still dealing with the stadium issue," Judi Partridge, another Councillor opposed to bidding for the Commonwealth Games, said. 

"We do not need another fiasco."

There remains growing belief within the Commonwealth Games Federation that it makes sense to award the 2030 Commonwealth Games to Canada to celebrate its 100th anniversary. 

Canada has not hosted the Games since Victoria in 1994.

A bid from Victoria to replace Durban after the South African city was stripped of the 2022 Commonwealth Games in March collapsed last month after the Government in British Columbia refused to financially support it.

The Games now seem set to be awarded to Birmingham in England after the UK Government today chose it as its candidate ahead of Liverpool.