It’s just over a year until Toronto hosts six games as part of the 2026 FIFA World Cup and arguments over how the tournament will be funded still haven’t been resolved.
In the latest feud, Toronto is hinting it could reduce its commitment by asking the provincial government to pay more. Queen’s Park has, in no uncertain terms, said no.
Next June, Toronto will hold six games as part of a World Cup being hosted across Canada, the United States and Mexico.
Putting on those games is set to cost $380 million and has been the subject of a tense back-and-forth between the City of Toronto and the Ford government.
When the costs looked like they could be closer to $300 million, Ontario agreed to pay $97 million toward hosting the games and the federal government pitched in $104 million.
A recent report prepared for city council, however, suggests a substantial amount of the money Ontario promised to the city will be eaten up by existing commitments.
A total of $15 million alone will go toward public health, increased hospital staffing, paramedics and preparing for surging demand on hospitals as thousands of fans descend on the city.
Almost $40 million of the $97 million is already assigned and won’t go to the overall cost, the report said.
Toronto Mayor Olivia Chow said the province should be covering those costs too — and suggested she would consider scaling back her own commitments if they did not.
“The $178 million is all we can afford anymore,” she said.
“So we will either have to find $40 million somewhere, I’m not sure where. Maybe the province can look at the list they gave us to see if the beautification of the GO station is part of what FIFA is about.”
Finance Minister Peter Bethelfalvy killed the idea that Ontario had more to give at a news conference on Wednesday.
“We stood up front and said we’d be there for $97 million, we were very clear when we said that, we did say, at the same time, that’s it,” he said. “And that’s it.”
The stalemate leaves Toronto’s World Cup plans short tens of millions of dollars and repeats an impasse between the two governments, which preceded the announcement of the $97 million.
Back in May 2023, with Toronto set to host part of the international tournament, the Ford government spent months deliberating over whether it would help with hosting costs at all.
The indecision at the time stopped Ontario from contributing to the planning of the event. Eventually, Ontario agreed to pay the $97 million, but costs have continued to rise.
The first World Cup game in Toronto will be held on June 12, 2026.