Despite the hurdles, Toronto will be “ready” for the 2026 World Cup | OneFootball

The 2026 World Cup will be the first to be held in three countries, but unlike the United States and Mexico, Canada has never hosted the tournament. In Toronto, which along with Vancouver are the Canadian cities that will host matches, preparations for the tournament have faced obstacles, such as the emergence of some differing opinions with FIFA regarding essential expenses and budget uncertainties.

However, the executive director of the 2026 World Cup in Toronto, Sharon Bollenbach, told AFP that the setbacks were predictable and promised that the city “will be ready” for the start of the event, just over six months from now.

“Making the decision to host a World Cup is something very bold,” said Bollenbach. “I sincerely believe that big cities like Toronto sometimes need to make important and bold decisions, and not all of these decisions will please everyone.”

“Exaggerated”

The majority of the tournament will be played in the United States, which was the sole host in 1994. Mexico, which previously hosted the World Cup in 1970 and 1986, will host 13 matches, as will Canada. Bollenbach pointed out that no country, not even FIFA, has experience with a tournament of 48 teams and 104 matches, which allowed for some “flexibility” in organizational negotiations.

There were cases in which Toronto told FIFA: “That’s a bit exaggerated, we can’t handle that from a budgetary perspective,” said Bollenbach, who considered this dialogue “very good.” One example was the training facilities. FIFA wanted Toronto to build three new fields, but eventually “was willing to give in,” Bollenbach explained.

“We wanted to ensure that if we built training facilities, they would actually be used,” she added. “We stopped needing several new grounds for training fields and reduced it to just one.”

Trump complicates visitor projections

Toronto will find out which teams it will host after the World Cup group draw, which will take place in Washington on December 5. The Prime Minister of Canada, Mark Carney, confirmed this week that he will be present, along with the President of the United States, Donald Trump. Bollenbach stated that initial projections indicated that 300,000 people could visit Toronto during the tournament, a number that will be adjusted after the draw.

Toronto may also have to prepare for a larger number of visitors, given the possibility that some fans may feel safer traveling to Canada than to the United States. In May, Trump promised that all visitors would be welcome during the World Cup, but there is evidence that his policies, which include strict immigration rules, have harmed tourism.

The economic analysis company Tourism Economics predicted in August that the total number of international arrivals in the United States will decrease by 8.2% in 2025 and cited “a negative perception” of the country among travelers worldwide.

“I think that’s how people feel, even unrelated to the World Cup,” said Bollenbach, who added that it would be “prudent” for Toronto to consider the possibility of receiving anti-Trump visitors.

Budget uncertainties

Toronto’s World Cup matches will be played at the renovated BMO Field, home of Toronto FC, the city’s MLS franchise. The lack of major capital projects helped keep spending in check, said Bollenbach, with a current budget of approximately 380 million Canadian dollars (R$ 1.4 billion at the current exchange rate). However, Toronto had to sign the hosting agreement before receiving funding commitments from the province of Ontario.

The tournament begins in June, but the funding agreement is not finalized and budget negotiations between the city and the province are a constant source of controversy in Canadian politics.

“Talks are ongoing,” said Bollenbach. “There have been some back and forth behind the scenes.” The estimated organizational costs are higher in Vancouver, partly due to the necessary renovations at BC Place stadium, and the private sector in the west coast city has expressed concern about the lack of hotel space, according to the local press.

This article was translated into English by Artificial Intelligence. You can read the original version in 🇧🇷 here.