Vancouver Prepares to Host Seven 2026 FIFA World Cup Matches
Photo Credit: Kenneth Chan via The Daily Hive
Vancouver will host seven FIFA World Cup matches at BC Place from Jun. 13 to Jul. 11, which is estimated to bring over one million visitors to the province. This increase in tourism is predicted to benefit hotels, restaurants, retail stores, and thousands of local businesses across the city. However, it may also limit housing availability, increase demand for police and emergency services, and strain public transit systems and infrastructure.
According to the Host Committee Lead, Jessie Adcock, preparing for the World Cup has been a years-long process, beginning in early 2024. “While the Host Committee is leading coordination and delivery, an event of this magnitude takes a collective effort from countless people and organizations,” she said, according to a FIFA press release.
To prepare for the event, the City of Vancouver is working with provincial and federal partners to expand transit services and improve infrastructure. Some of the plans include increased SkyTrain and bus frequency and road closures near BC Place to manage traffic and improve pedestrian safety. City officials, transit agencies, and event organizers are also developing “last mile” plans to help people safely travel from transit stations to BC Place through designated walking routes, signage, and crowd-control measures. To ensure the games run smoothly, the city also plans to increase security at venues, implement coordinated crowd control, and designate areas where fans can gather to watch matches throughout the city.
The PNE Amphitheatre, which is currently being redeveloped, will be one of the main fan areas, hosting the FIFA Fan Festival, where fans can watch matches and attend events between games. Officials say the site will also serve as a long-term cultural space after the tournament ends.
The Nest spoke with FIFA Vancouver’s head of security, Jay Richard, who is in charge of ensuring the safety of everyone at the World Cup matches and within the BC Place vicinity.
Richard said that his team is “responsible for looking after the operational staff that the RCMP will be deploying during games.” To do so, they have a team of staff working to keep police officers safe during the games. In addition, the staff also provide services such as database checks and other safety-related tasks.
“During the event, police officers from across the West will be deployed throughout the Lower Mainland to ensure the safety of all who reside or are visiting here,” he shared. “I will have approximately 50 staff working on my team to ensure officer safety. That will only be a small part of the several thousand staff working together with all policing agencies in the [Lower Mainland] to ensure that the games are safe and enjoyable for all.”
For athletes’ training, Killarney Park is undergoing significant upgrades to ensure that it can adequately support players. It will include a temporary team facility with locker rooms, recovery areas, and support spaces for players and staff. Many of these upgrades will remain after the tournament and continue to be used for community sports programs and public recreation.
“I’m delighted to see the progress made on the new Venue Specific Training Site at Killarney Park,” said Laura Christensen, the Chair of the Vancouver Board of Parks and Recreation, as per the FIFA website. “The training site will offer a world-class location for teams as they train and prepare for matches at BC Place. We can’t wait to welcome the world’s best to one of our many beautiful parks next summer!”
In addition, the city is preparing a Host City Dressing Program to transform streets, bridges, transit stations, and public spaces with World Cup branding. This will include banners, signage, and visual displays.
This year, the tournament will feature 48 teams from all around the world, with seven matches total taking place in Vancouver. Additionally, the tournament will use a new format of 12 groups of four, where the top two teams in each group, plus the eight best third-placed teams, will advance to the round of 32. This new format was chosen over the 32 teams in groups of eight because of the number factors, team and fan experience, player welfare and sporting integrity. The final match on Jul. 19 will determine the winning team, which will have played eight games over the course of 39 days.
FIFA has drawn interest from students across Vancouver. Emma Stott, a grade 12 student from John Oliver Secondary School, said she is most looking forward to the Vancouver soccer community coming together and having a friendly rivalry.
According to her father, Darren Stott, the process to buy the tickets was very difficult, and he went through a few rounds of lotteries, but was unsuccessful.
“I logged on for the final sales where I could buy any ticket I wanted, but the price was astronomical, so I didn’t buy any tickets apart from the cheapest one in Vancouver for New Zealand versus Belgium. Others were $700, $1,000, and even over $8,000 for final tickets,” he told The Nest.
Madi Wong (12) has tickets to see a few games at the World Cup, and she’s most excited to see Team Canada play. “Like anyone else who plays soccer, I really wanted to go when I found out the World Cup was here. I didn’t think there was any chance that I would get tickets, though,” she shared.
“They’re in such high demand, and people from across the world are going to be travelling here to see the games. Seeing any professional game of the sport you play is always something amazing because you get to see practically the highest level of the sport possible.” Wong attended a Women's World Cup game when she was younger, but she found that it was much smaller-scale, because men’s sports are more advertised.
Vancouver Mayor Ken Sim said the city continues to build momentum ahead of the event, describing it as “an incredible opportunity to celebrate our communities, share our culture, and highlight the incredible experiences that make Vancouver unique,” as per the FIFA website.