Officials give cost and revenue estimates for FIFA 2026 World Cup in Vancouver

Projected cost of hosting FIFA World Cup in Vancouver grows to over $700M

Estimated revenues also up, according to B.C. government update

The net cost to B.C. for Vancouver to host the FIFA World Cup will be between $90 million and $114 million, the B.C. Ministry of Tourism, Arts, Culture and Sport announced Friday.

This represents a change from the government’s June 2025 estimate of between $85 million and $145 million.

Projected costs and revenues associated with the tournament, which will see Vancouver’s B.C. Place host seven games between June 11 and July 19, have both increased, according to the update.

Costs are now projected at between $685 million and $729 million, up from the $532 million to $624 million estimated last year. The increase is mainly due to a more complete safety and security plan and updated estimates for the FIFA Fan Festival, the government said.

The upper-end projection of $729 million breaks down to a cost of $104 million per game.

The biggest component of that is safety and security, at $242 million, a figure that could change as more is known about which teams will be playing the two knockout games in Vancouver.

These costs have been partly offset by a new $100-million grant from Public Safety Canada.

Another major cost is upgrading and operating costs for B.C. Place, which are projected to be between $178 million and $185 million.

Projected revenues for the tournament have also increased to between $595 million and $615 million.

This is up from a projected $448 million to $478 million a year ago.

The largest source of revenue — between $250 and $260 million — is projected to be the Major Events Municipal and Regional District Tax, more commonly known as the hotel tax.

This is an additional 2.5 per cent added to the cost of hotels in the City of Vancouver starting in February 2023 and projected to end in 2030.

The B.C. government also counts $216 million in federal — but taxpayer sourced — money as revenue, including $100 million from Public Safety Canada toward security and $116 million from Sport Canada.

The first match at B.C. Place will be June 13 between Turkey and Australia.

Tara Carman is a senior reporter with CBC British Columbia. She has been a journalist in Vancouver since 2007 and previously worked in Victoria, Geneva and Ottawa. You can reach her at tara.carman@cbc.ca