Just days after a new report said Toronto could be on the hook for more money than expected to host six FIFA World Cup games in the city next summer, council has agreed restrict expenses for the international tournament for the time being.
The report went before Toronto City Council at Thursday’s meeting, and was meant to provide councillors with an update on the status of intergovernmental funding related to hosting part of the FIFA World Cup in June 2026.
The estimated cost of holding the six matches in the city is $380 million. Of that, the federal government has agreed to kick in $104.3 million, while the province is providing $97 million. The city is picking up the remaining $178.7 million of the cost.
The city had been hoping that much of the provincial contribution would be in the form of cash to offset tournament expenses, but the new report revealed that the $97 million also includes services being provided by the province, such as policing, transportation, and health care.
The report says the latest estimate for provincial services, which are still being negotiated, pegs those costs at around $39 million, leaving less cash than expected to offset city expenses.
At Thursday’s meeting, a motion tabled by Mayor Olivia Chow and approved by council directs the city manager to limit FIFA World Cup expenses to $340 million “until such time as the City of Toronto has identified savings, secured intergovernmental funding or other sources of revenue to fund [the] full $380 million budget.”
The motion states that the restriction on expenses includes “not entering into any contracts or commencing a legally binding procurement process” that could result in incurring expenses beyond the $340 million limit.
With files from CP24’s Josh Freeman
