Tens of thousands of spectators are ready to attend the opening ceremony of the Commonwealth Games in Birmingham this evening.
More than 5,000 athletes from 72 Commonwealth countries will participate in 11 days of sporting events.
Prince Charles and his wife Camilla, as well as the Earl and Countess of Wessexwill attend the proceedings tonight at the Alexander Stadium in Birmingham.
Athletes will compete in 22 sports, tickets are still available for almost all.
The Birmingham event marks the first time since 2002 that the Commonwealth Games have been held in Great Britain.
MailOnline answers all your questions below.
Tens of thousands of spectators will watch the opening ceremony of the Commonwealth Games in Birmingham tonight. Above: Comedian Lenny Henry held the Queen’s Baton during the Baton Relay yesterday
What time and where is the opening ceremony?
The opening ceremony will take place at the Alexander Stadium in Birmingham.
It starts tonight at 8pm and is expected to last three hours.
The Games will be held in Birmingham this year after being chosen as hosts in 2017.
This is the third time England has hosted the event, after London in 1934 and Manchester in 2002.
A total of 15 venues in the West Midlands have been selected to host various sporting events, including the famous NEC Arena in Birmingham city center and Coventry Stadium – home of the Wasps rugby team and Coventry City FC.
The opening ceremony will take place at the Alexander Stadium (pictured) in Birmingham. It starts tonight at 8pm and is expected to last three hours
How can I watch the opening ceremony and the matches myself?
Coverage of the opening ceremony is on BBC One and starts at 7pm. It is set to last until 10pm.
In total, the BBC will feature over 200 hours of live coverage of the matches on BBC One, BBC Two and BBC Three.
There are also up to 11 live streams to watch online, on BBC iPlayer or the BBC Sport website.
A highlight show – Tonight at the Games – is shown on BBC One every night.
Which Royals are expected to attend?
Last week it was announced that the Queen will not be present at the opening ceremony.
Instead, Prince Charles and his wife Camilla will be there in her place. Prince Charles will deliver a speech and a message from his mother.
Her Majesty has in recent months stepped back from attending some events in an official capacity as she deals with ‘mobility issues’.
She is the patron of the Commonwealth Games Federation (CGF) and head of the Commonwealth.
Prince Charles and Camilla are assisted at the opening ceremony by the Earl and Countess of Wessex. Prince Edward is Deputy Patron of the CGF.
Last week it was announced that the Queen will not be present at the opening ceremony. Instead, Prince Charles and his wife Camilla will be there in her place. Prince Charles will deliver a speech and a message from his mother
Prince Charles and Camilla are assisted at the opening ceremony by the Earl and Countess of Wessex (pictured in Cyprus last month). Prince Edward is Deputy Patron of the CGF
Other members of the royal family, including Prince William and his wife Kate and Princess Anne, will attend various events during the 12-day games.
On Friday, Anne will visit the Commonwealth Games Athletes’ Village at Warwick University where she will meet athletes competing in the games.
She will then watch the Rugby Sevens at Coventry Stadium, where she will see the following matches: England vs Samoa; South Africa vs Malaysia; Scotland vs Tonga; and Canada v Wales.
Other members of the royal family, including Prince William and his wife Kate and Princess Anne, will attend various events during the 12-day games
On Saturday, the Duke and Duchess of Gloucester will watch cycling at London’s Lee Valley Velopark, attend the 4,000m individual support event and present the winning athletes with their medals.
On Monday, August 1, the Earl and Countess of Wessex will return to Birmingham to watch the city’s events between Monday and Wednesday.
On Tuesday, the Duke and Duchess of Cambride and the Earl and Countess of Wessex will attend the games again.
Prince Edward will also deliver a speech at the closing ceremony on August 8.
Which countries are involved?
A total of 54 Commonwealth countries and 18 territories are sending athletes to compete.
In total there are 6,500 athletes and officials.
The territories competing separately from the nations they depend on include the British Crown Dependencies.
Among them are the British Virgin Islands, the Cook Islands, and the Turks and Caicos Islands.
The UK’s four home countries send their own separate teams, as they do at the Olympics.
The Maldives are competing after rejoining the Commonwealth in 2020.
Only six teams have competed in the Commonwealth Games. These are England, Canada, Australia, New Zealand, Scotland and Wales.
A total of 54 Commonwealth countries and 18 territories are sending athletes to compete. Above: A display in front of the Birmingham Library showing the insignia of participating countries
People walk along Victoria Square decorated in preparation for the Birmingham 2022 Commonwealth Games in Birmingham
How do I get tickets for the Games?
Tickets for swimming, cycling and the triathlon and paratriathlon are sold out and are now only resold.
Tickets are still available for all other sports. Tickets are still available for tonight’s opening ceremony.
They can be purchased on the official website https://tickets.birmingham2022.com.
Which sports are covered?
A total of 19 sports disciplines will take place during the Games, each with a different number of events.
The full list is below:
- Water Sports – Diving
- Water sports – swimming and paraswimming
- Athletics and Para-athletics
- Badminton
- Basketball 3×3
- Beach Volleybal
- boxing
- Cricket T20
- Cycling – mountain bike
- Cycling – Road Race
- Cycling – time trial
- Cycling – track and parabaan
- Gymnastics – Artistic
- Gymnastics – Rhythmic
- Hockey
- Judo
- Lawn bowls and para lawn bowls
- netball
- Para powerlifting
- Rugby sevens
- Squash
- Table tennis and para table tennis
- Triathlon and Paratriathlon
- Wheelchair basketball 3×3
- Weightlifting
- wrestle
What did the Commonwealth Games get their name from?
The Commonwealth Games were originally called the British Empire Games.
They were first held in Hamilton, Canada, in August 1930.
The second Empire Games were held in London in August 1934.
The name for the games remained the same until 1952, when they were renamed The British Empire and Commonwealth Games.
The word empire didn’t come up until 1970, when the British Commonwealth Games were held.
The word British was subsequently deleted from the title from 1978.
The Commonwealth Games were originally called the British Empire Games. They were first held in Hamilton, Canada, in August 1930. The second Empire Games were held in London in August 1934. Above: Female hurdlers at the 1934 Empire Games