Quick answer: the 2026 Commonwealth Games runs a deliberately reduced programme, and several disciplines Indian fans strongly associate with the event are simply not on it. This Jai Club guide sets out which sports are running, which are absent, and how to turn a published session time into Indian Standard Time. No medal predictions and no live counts — those belong on the official results board.
If you have spent the last few days searching for an India hockey fixture or a squash draw and finding nothing, your search skills are fine. The 2026 edition is a different animal from Birmingham or Gold Coast, and once you know that, everything else about following it becomes straightforward.
Why 2026 Looks Different
The Games were rescued rather than routinely awarded. When the original host withdrew citing cost, Glasgow stepped in with a compact proposal built around venues that already existed in the city, and the trade-off for making it happen at all was a much shorter sport list. That is the honest story behind the missing schedules, and it is worth understanding because it also changes how the medal table behaves — a point we cover in the medal tally ranking guide. Fewer events means a single result moves a team’s position further than it would at a full-sized Games.
What Is On, and What Is Not
The announced programme is built around a core group of sports, with para events integrated into the same competition and counting towards the same team totals rather than running separately.
| Status | Disciplines | Note for Indian viewers |
|---|---|---|
| On the announced programme | Athletics, swimming, artistic gymnastics, track cycling, weightlifting, boxing, judo, bowls, netball, 3x3 basketball — with para events across several of these | India has a long Commonwealth history in weightlifting, boxing and athletics |
| Not on the 2026 programme | Hockey, badminton, table tennis, squash, wrestling, shooting | The main reason Indian fans cannot find a fixture list this cycle |
| Always verify | Final event lists within each sport | Programmes are revised close to the Games — check the official site |
That second row is the important one. Wrestling, shooting and badminton have historically been among India’s most productive Commonwealth sports, so their absence genuinely changes what the fortnight looks like from an Indian living room. It is a description of the programme, not a complaint — and it should be confirmed against the official Commonwealth Sport site before you plan your viewing, because event lists have moved before.
Where India’s History Sits
Two things can be said safely. India has, across past editions, produced consistent returns in weightlifting, boxing and wrestling, with badminton, shooting and table tennis contributing heavily in the editions where they were on the programme. And athletics has become a more serious contributor in recent cycles than it was a generation ago. Both statements describe completed history, which you can check through the Commonwealth Games overview on Wikipedia.
What cannot be said is what any of that means for 2026. Past strength in a sport that is no longer on the programme predicts nothing at all, and even in the sports that remain, form, entries and fitness change. Our Mirabai Chanu profile is written the same way — background and context, no forecast.
Getting the Timings Right
- Glasgow to IST is four and a half hours forward during British Summer Time. A 19:00 local final is 23:30 IST.
- Read the schedule in local time, then convert once. Converting each session individually is how errors creep in.
- Finals cluster in the evening session. Which puts most of the medal moments late at night in India.
- Confirm the offset on the official page. Daylight saving means the gap is not the same all year.
Broadcast and streaming arrangements differ by territory and change between editions, so we are not going to name a channel or an app here. The rights-holder announcement for India is the thing to look for, and it is published before the Games rather than during. The same caution applies to cricket — our India next match and where to watch guide explains how to find a confirmed broadcaster without relying on a page that may be a year out of date.
Following It Without Getting Bad Information
During a Games, the gap between what has happened and what is being shared online is wider than at any other time. Screenshots circulate without timestamps, aggregator tables lag the live feed, and a result under review can be reported as final. The habits that protect you are simple and we set them out in how to follow live results properly.
If you are up late for an evening final and there is an hour to fill, the Jai Club Wingo game and colour trading settle a round in about a minute, and the free demo shows the format with no balance at stake. They are unconnected to any event on the schedule and produce their own random results.
Play responsibly. Jai Club games involve real financial risk and random outcomes; no method changes them and nothing on this site is a bet on a sporting result. Late-night play after a long session is exactly when limits get forgotten, so set a budget first — the budget basics guide shows a workable method. Treat it as entertainment, never chase losses, and play only if you are 18 or older. Support links are on our responsible gaming page.