Toronto Mayor Olivia Chow says the FIFA World Cup in Toronto was an “unquestionable success,” but city officials say it will likely take months to unpack the full “financial picture” of the tournament, including whether it came in on budget.
Chow made the comment during a news conference at city hall on Monday morning, less than a day after the World Cup officially came to an end with Spain’s 1-0 extra time win over Argentina in New Jersey.
Toronto ultimately hosted six matches during the tournament.
Chow said approximately 250,000 people attended the matches at Toronto Stadium and another 350,000 people took in World Cup matches from FIFA Fan Fest at Fort York. She said an additional 60,000 people also attended separate watch parties hosted at Nathan Phillips Square.
“This was a once in a lifetime, a once in a generation for our city and we saw Toronto come alive in a way that was truly special,” Chow said.
Toronto’s budget for hosting the World Cup was set at $380 million, with the city’s share ($178.7 million) expected to be largely funded through a levy on hotel accommodations, sponsorships and other revenue sources.
Chow told reporters on Monday that it was important that “not any dime or dollar” related to hosting the World Cup come from taxpayers and she believes that the city ultimately “kept to that promise.”
City Manager Paul Johnson, however, said that it is too soon to say for sure whether the event will come in on budget.
He said that while he does not believe the additional expenses the city incurred throughout the 39-day tournament were “so dramatic” that it will result in significant cost overruns, it could take an extended period of time to understand the full financial picture of the World Cup.
Johnson said that as part of that exercise, city officials will also be working to determine whether the nearly $1 billion in expected economic impact from hosting the World Cup actually materialized.
“There were certain pockets that did very well and others areas that perhaps had expected to see a economic impact that was higher than what was fully experienced,” Johnson said. “We will look through some of those numbers, FIFA will also be providing some of their input to it and others as well and over time the full story of how this went from the City of Toronto will be put together.”
Chow told reporters back in 2024 that she was “saddled” with the financial costs of hosting the World Cup following a decision to pursue hosting the tournament by the previous administration at Toronto City Hall.
On Monday, Chow was asked whether the tournament was ultimately worth its p[rice tag but did not directly answer the question.
“One thing I have learned is to look forward not backward and looking forward is the children, the ordinary Torontonians that have discovered the game and a hero or heroes and being able to dream and that is priceless,” she said.
