Philadelphia to host the 2026 MLB All-Star Game

April 16 (UPI) -- Philadelphia has been picked to host the 2026 Major League Baseball All-Star Game.

The announcement was made during a ceremony Tuesday at Independence Hall that the game will be held at Citizens Bank Park.

Several current and former Philadelphia Phillies players attended the event, along with Major League Baseball Commissioner Rob Manfred, Philadelphia Mayor Jim Kenney and Pennsylvania Gov. Tom Wolf.

Philadelphia was pushing to get the game for 2026 because that year will be the 250th anniversary of the signing of the Declaration of Independence.

"As the birthplace of our country, bringing the MLB All-Star Game back to Philadelphia is the perfect way to celebrate the 250th anniversary of American independence," Wolf told CBS Philadelphia.

"Hosting massive sporting events like baseball's Midsummer Classic or the 2017 NFL Draft brings even more excitement to the city and generates a huge economic impact for workers and businesses," he said.

This will be the first time that Citizens Bank Park will host an All-Star game since its opening in 2004 and the fifth time that Philadelphia has hosted the game -- the first time since 1996, when the game was played at Veterans Stadium.