Jobs, contracts 'pipeline' for Victoria 2026 launched in Bendigo three years out

More than 1200 contracts ranging from sporting equipment to medals, mascot design, telecoms, security and IT can be applied for by businesses big and small.

Minister for Commonwealth Games Delivery and Member for Bendigo East Jacinta Allan said it was a three-year race to get Victoria "Games ready" by March 17, 2026.

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"Just as the gun's fired on three years to go to the Games, the gun is also firing on how we want to engage with businesses across the state to make sure they can also be Games ready and part of this big event," she said.

Ms Allan said she expected a whole range of businesses to apply for contracts, with regional and Victorian businesses encouraged to get involved.

"What we're announcing today is not just the pipeline of opportunities but also the procurement model that is going to govern it," she said.

"Like we do with our major projects, we have a very clear local content requirement across all of our major projects and we are bringing that type of model here to the Commonwealth Games."

She said the state government was aiming for as many local businesses to be involved as possible, however the diversity of the procurement pipeline meant it was hard to put a number on exactly how much would be local content.

"If you can have a look at the details...[there's] pretty comprehensive list of the sorts of things that we need," she said.

"As well as presenting gold medals to athletes, we want to be giving gold medal opportunities to Victoria businesses."

More than one million tickets will go on sale for the Commonwealth Games, and early state government estimates suggest the Games could attract 300,000 visitors from outside the host cities, including 50,000 in Bendigo.

Victoria 2026 organising committee chief executive Jeroen Weimar said there would be opportunities for local businesses to learn more about the procurement process through forums, chambers of commerce and online at victoria2026.com.au/business.

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Be.Bendigo chair Rob Herbert said the organisation would play a key role in providing information sessions and workshops for businesses that might not have participated in a tender process before.

While there was a breadth of opportunities, Mr Herbert said he encouraged businesses to look at the smaller contracts too.

"Some businesses might look at this and think it's the great big contracts and that we mightn't be big enough to actually participate [in], but there are so many other contracts options that will be available and that will become a lot clearer," he said.

Examples of goods and services procured during the Birmingham 2022 Commonwealth Games include 464 boxing gloves, 492 hockey balls, 1400 tonnes of sand, 1200 shuttlecocks, more than 45,000 paracetamol tablets and more than 16,000 folding chairs.

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