MCR Drop will bring BMX, skateboarding, 3x3 basketball, music and art to city centre locations next August...
A new four-day festival combining urban sports, music, art and culture will take over locations across Manchester city centre next summer.
MCR Drop will run from 5-8 August 2027, with BMX, skateboarding and 3×3 basketball forming part of the sporting programme alongside live music, visual art and other cultural events.
The festival is being created through a partnership between Manchester City Council and UK Sport, with Factory International overseeing its cultural programme.
Elite athletes will compete alongside rising talent across the four days, while musicians and artists will appear as part of a programme taking place across different city centre spaces.
Most events and activities will be free, with opportunities for visitors to take part in sports themselves. Organisers also expect the festival to attract thousands of visitors from outside Manchester.
Councillor Shazia Butt, Executive Member for Culture, Leisure and Libraries at Manchester City Council, said: “Manchester is a city renowned for its creativity, culture and sporting excellence, and MCR Drop brings those strengths together in an exciting new way. This ambitious new festival will transform iconic city spaces into a stage for world-class urban sport, music, art and culture, while showcasing the incredible talent and energy that exists across our communities.
“MCR Drop is about more than delivering a spectacular event. It reflects our ambition to position Manchester as the UK’s capital of urban sport and culture, creating opportunities for residents, inspiring the next generation, growing participation and showcasing our city on a global stage.”
Factory International has worked with the council on developing the MCR Drop concept over recent months and will curate the arts and culture programme running alongside the sporting events.
Low Kee Hong, Creative Director of Factory International, said: “Manchester has one of the most significant cultural legacies of any city in the UK, and over the past two decades it has become a destination for some of the biggest global names in arts and culture to create and present one-of-a-kind experiences.
“We are thrilled to welcome this exciting new festival to the city. With its unique combination of street art, culture and urban sports, MCR Drop will perfectly complement all the other fantastic events taking place next summer in the city, including Manchester International Festival and many more.”
Manchester-based artist, graphic designer and skateboarder Jess Winter added: “I’m super stoked to see this kind of event come to Manchester, to give the skate community more opportunity to come together and celebrate what we love. Skateboarding is about bringing people together, the skaters who paved the way and the groms just starting out. To have that represented up North is gonna be sick – I can’t wait!”
Further details, including venues, athletes, artists and musicians taking part, are due to be announced ahead of MCR Drop next August.
Head to the MCR Drop website for more…
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