*Dakar makes biggest African leap as New York takes No.1 spot

TAIWO ADELU

Lagos has broken into the global Top 100 sports cities, ranking 90th in the 2026 Ranking of Sports Cities released by global communications firm Burson.

The ranking puts Nigeria’s commercial capital among an elite group of cities worldwide recognised for their strong association with sport, with Lagos joining Dakar, Cairo, Cape Town and Rabat as the five African cities on the list.

Lagos ranked 90th, just one place behind Cape Town at 89th. Dakar was Africa’s highest-ranked city at 47th, followed by Cairo at 69th and Rabat at 94th.

The ranking measures the global sporting profile of cities using a combination of stakeholder perceptions, media coverage, social media activity and reputation analysis.

Dakar Shoots Up 33 Places

Dakar emerged as the biggest mover in the 2026 ranking, soaring 33 places from 80th in 2025 to 47th this year.

The dramatic rise comes as Senegal’s capital prepares to host the Dakar 2026 Youth Olympic Games, the first Olympic sporting event to be staged in Africa.

The Games have thrust Dakar into the international sporting spotlight and strengthened the city’s global reputation ahead of the event.

For Lagos, the 90th position places the city among the world’s most strongly sport-associated urban centres, reflecting its visibility across professional and grassroots sport, major competitions and the wider international sports ecosystem.

New York Takes Global No.1

At the top of the global ranking is New York City, which displaced Paris from the No.1 position.

Paris, which had topped the ranking for three consecutive years, dropped to second place, while Los Angeles, London and Madrid occupied third, fourth and fifth positions respectively.

New York’s rise comes after a landmark sporting year featuring the Knicks’ NBA Championship and the FIFA World Cup Final at New York New Jersey Stadium.

But Burson said the city’s strength goes beyond individual sporting events, pointing to its year-round ecosystem of major professional franchises, international competitions and sustained global media attention.

Paris continues to draw strength from the legacy and international profile of the Paris 2024 Games.

Los Angeles is also gaining momentum ahead of its hosting of the 2028 Olympic and Paralympic Games, while London’s diversified sporting calendar and Madrid’s football heritage and international events continue to reinforce their global profiles.

Cities Fight For Sporting Influence

Burson said the ranking demonstrates that sports federations and organisations can shape the reputation of cities in ways that go beyond awarding major events.

Host-city selection, stakeholder engagement, competition formats and year-round sporting programmes can all influence a city’s visibility, credibility and long-term standing in global sport.

The ranking is updated annually, with the five lowest-ranked cities dropped from the list and five new cities selected from those identified by survey respondents.

The cities set to enter the 2027 ranking are Astana, Helsinki, Nice, Valencia and Warsaw.

How Lagos And Other Cities Were Ranked

The 2026 ranking covers data collected between July 1, 2025 and June 30, 2026.

The measurement period captured the full build-up to and Games period for Milano Cortina 2026, while the FIFA World Cup was still in its early stages when the data-gathering period ended.

Burson said media and social media coverage were analysed throughout the period.

Brandwatch tracked sport-related mentions of each city across X, Instagram, Facebook, Reddit, blogs and websites, while Muck Rack monitored media reports associating sport with individual cities.

The Ranking of Sports Cities is an initiative of Burson’s Lausanne office, a regional centre of excellence for sport located in the Olympic Capital, where more than 60 international sports federations and organisations are based.

Burson said it works with cities, regions, countries and sports stakeholders to maximise the reputational benefits of hosting major sporting events — from identifying suitable events and supporting competitive bids to developing communications and public relations strategies around major competitions