Manchester City Parade 2026: sun-baked crowds at the Etihad.

‘Manchester City parade 2026’ took place on a magnificent sunny day. It really was one those days where the air was warm even before breakfast.

Even the pavements that all too often shine from the rain, shimmered in the late afternoon heat as we headed for the Manchester City parade 2026.

It was just the day for sun cream, sunhats and a sun soaked send off.

Manchester City Parade 2026 and time to say goodbye

Pep Guardiola was saying his goodbyes after a decade that reshaped English football. The season had ended well for City, with two domestic trophies and a near miss on the third.

You can see a series of photo based blog posts through the rainy city lens from this season’s successful Wembley trips. The posts are at these links: League Cup win, Fa Cup semi final and FA Cup win

I was at the City parade with my wife, my son and three of my four grandchildren. They are all young enough to still enjoy the simple excitement of the occasion. I go because it’s sort of what I do and it tidies up the loose ends of the football season.

Steaming hot at the Manchester City Parade 2026

The weather was absolutely scorching and even though we were well covered with sun cream and sunhats we made sure to seek out shade as we waited for the open top buses to arrive.

The children moved out of the shade to collect free water and flags and then to wave at the collection of City players as they arrived.

Although this was the first time a parade had ended at the Etihad stadium there was still a typical and familiar feel of a Manchester City trophy parade.

The truth is that the noises and slow movement of a Manchester City parade have become part of Manchester’s calendar.

A golden age and time to say goodbye

We have lived through the most gilded of golden ages. Twenty trophies in ten years has made it feel unreal at times.

It is easy to forget the early success before Pep arrived. The Cups and the League titles under Mancini and Pellegrini set the path.

But this day felt a little different. There was the unmistakable certainty that it was time to say goodbye. A farewell to Pep – the man who shaped this era and changed the football.

A lot has happened in my life over those ten years. Great happiness and great sadness have come and gone. Through it all, Pep and City have remained a constant presence and a sort of sporting backdrop through ten years of change.

I know you can say it’s just a game or it’s only football but a life without passion feels a bit thin to me. Football has carried some of mine, even when people say it’s only a game.

What follows is a picture set of the crowd through my rainy city lens on that blistering afternoon. Sun‑struck faces and some small moments.

People have always been the story at the Etihad.