Costs for 2026 FIFA World Cup in Vancouver double to up to $581M

Costs for staging 2026 FIFA World Cup in Vancouver double to up to $581 million

BC Place Stadium in Vancouver during the 2015 FIFA Women's World Cup. (BC Place Stadium)

In just over two years from now, Vancouver will be one of 16 cities across Canada, the United States, and Mexico co-hosting the 2026 FIFA World Cup.

There is now a clearer picture of the requirements and costs associated with Vancouver’s role of co-hosting the tournament, with the provincial government providing media today with a major update on planning efforts.

As of March 2024, the total combined cost across all levels of government for Vancouver’s co-hosting duties is estimated to be between $483 million and $581 million.

This is up from the preliminary cost estimates of $240 million to $260 million made in 2022, just before Vancouver was officially named one of Canada’s two host cities.

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Out of the newly updated total cost of $483 million to $581 million, nearly half, or approximately $246 million, will be covered by the City of Vancouver. This includes public safety and security, creating team training sites, organizing the FIFA Fan Festival, city decorations, traffic management around BC Place Stadium, and other required municipal services.

The provincial government, through BC Pavilion Corporation, will cover between $149 million and $196 million for the capital costs of upgrading BC Place Stadium and the tournament-time operating costs.

Also, the provincial government and other entities will incur between $88 million and $109 million in costs associated with provincial safety and security, transportation, emergency management, and health services.

The increased costs are partly due to Vancouver being awarded more matches — a total of seven matches, including a Round of 32 match and a Round of 16 match, instead of the previously assumed five matches. In contrast, Toronto’s total cost for staging six matches — including the first match played in Canada and one Round of 32 match — is $380 million.

As well, there are now updated FIFA requirements, including clarifications following several FIFA site visits relating to capital costs such as upgrades for BC Place Stadium and operations. The full range of planned upgrades was also revealed today, including a new centre video board, additional elevators, and improved team and media facilities.

Additionally, a sizeable portion of the new total cost figure is due to the new inclusion of contingency funds to cover any future unexpected costs, including a 24% contingency for operating costs and a 41% contingency for capital costs.

With all that said, the provincial government’s updated figures now estimate revenues and cost recoveries totalling $383 million to $436 million.

This includes $116 million in direct funding from the federal government and $37 million to $90 million in revenue from sources such as facility rental fees, FIFA’s commercial revenue program, and the FIFA Fan Festival.

The City of Vancouver’s costs are being covered by the new additional 2.5% Major Events Municipal and Regional District Tax on all hotels and other short-term accommodation bookings within Vancouver’s municipal jurisdiction. This extra hotel tax first went into effect in February 2023 and will remain until 2030, with the expectation that the tax will generate a total of $230 million to cover the municipal government’s portion of the FIFA World Cup costs.

“In just two short years, Vancouver will welcome the biggest event in the world,” said Ken Sim, the mayor of Vancouver.

“Hosting FIFA World Cup 26 Vancouver will boost Vancouver’s hospitality and entertainment industries, transform our city, and make us a world-class destination for tourism and major event hosting for decades to come.”

Before the end of June 2024, there will be announcements on the location of Vancouver’s official FIFA Fan Festival and the training sites for the various teams playing at BC Place Stadium. The municipal government has already indicated that it is recommending to FIFA that the PNE at Hastings Park be the venue of the month-long festival — where the PNE is currently building a $104 million new 10,000-seat outdoor amphitheatre with a landmark mass-timber roof. The new amphitheatre is expected to reach completion by early 2026.

The 55,000-seat BC Place Stadium is now expected to see a total of over 350,000 spectators based on seven matches — up from 269,000 spectators with five matches. In contrast, about 1.6 million tickets were made available for the events of the 2010 Winter Olympics.

It is anticipated that about 30,000 hotel rooms will be available within Vancouver and elsewhere in Metro Vancouver in 2026, not including the capacity found in Squamish and Whistler for people potentially travelling into the city for the day during the tournament.

For economic benefits for the period between 2026 and 2031, the provincial government estimates Vancouver’s global attention from hosting the FIFA World Cup will attract one million additional visitors, $1 billion in additional visitor spending, and $1 billion in additional provincial GDP.

There could be higher economic benefits depending on the makeup of the visiting national team allocations playing in the matches — in addition to coveted Team Canada home game matches.

“Marquee sporting events like the FIFA World Cup 26 have the power to inspire people to get involved in sport, amplify community spirit, and put a spotlight on our incredible province,” said Lana Popham, the BC Minister of Tourism, Arts, Culture, and Sport.

“We are excited to welcome hundreds of thousands of visitors to Vancouver and British Columbia during the World Cup to celebrate this once-in-a-lifetime opportunity with us, boost our tourism sector and economy, and help secure lasting benefits for the people of BC.”

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