There’s something quite magical about seeing, Finnie, the Commonwealth Games 2026 mascot, introduce herself in Gaelic.

“’S e Finnie a th’ annam!” 🦄

To mark Seachdain na Gàidhlig (World Gaelic Week), Glasgow 2026’s unicorn mascot Finnie teamed up with Speak Gaelic star Joy Dunlop to bring a splash of Gàidhlig to the Games. In a visit to Glasgow Gaelic School, pupils explored Finnie’s world through Gaelic vocabulary, from aon-adharcach (unicorn) and adharc (horn) to gàire (smile) and brògan (shoes). Anyone can join in the fun, too, thanks to their fun socials. The whole thing is playful, bright, and wonderfully world-crossing: a global sporting event framed through a vibrant minority language.

And it’s impossible to underestimate the power of that just now.

International sport has this extraordinary capacity to function as a shared emotional language. A goal, a sprint, a baton change – these are understood across borders without translation. But when major sporting events make space for local languages, something even richer happens. The universal and the local meet.

Sport – An International Lingua Franca

The Commonwealth Games are, by definition, multinational and multilingual. Yet here was a reminder that global visibility doesn’t have to mean reduction to a lingua franca, a need to flatten or erase linguistic identity. Instead, it can amplify it. A mascot speaking Gaelic doesn’t fragment the audience; it invites it in.

It says: this is Scotland, and Scotland speaks more than one language.

For language learners, this makes for a subtle but powerful additional lesson. Languages don’t only belong in classrooms or heritage campaigns. They belong in stadiums, on merchandise, in Instagram captions, and in the joyful semiotics of mascots with rainbow manes.

Sport becomes a touchstone — a shared cultural moment where languages coexist naturally. You don’t need to speak Gaelic to enjoy the Games. But encountering it there, woven into the excitement, might spark curiosity. And curiosity is how languages live.

There’s something hopeful about that. In a world that can feel divided along linguistic, cultural, and political lines, international sport reminds us that shared experiences can sit comfortably alongside linguistic diversity. The roar of a crowd is universal. The words that frame it can – and should – be beautifully local.

And honestly, if a unicorn can help carry that message, I’m all for it. 🦄💜

Finnie, the mascot of the Commonwealth Games 2026, weightlifting. ©️ Glasgow 2026 Ltd.