B.C. government delays release of World Cup hosting costs until month’s end

VANCOUVER — An army of giant UV lights has assembled on the field at B.C. Place and been given a critical task — nurture the grass below ahead of next month’s FIFA World Cup.

The B.C. government unveiled the temporary grass playing surface and a host of other renovations at the 55,000-seat stadium on Tuesday, exactly one month and one day before Vancouver hosts its first match in soccer’s biggest showcase.

“Just to see the field, to see all the preparations here underway, see everybody working so hard, it is hard to believe that we are so close to the world’s largest single sport sporting event and Vancouver’s part of it,” said Premier David Eby. “We are going to be in the global spotlight for an extended period.”

Vancouver is among 16 cities across Canada, the United States and Mexico that will host this year’s expanded tournament.

The World Cup kicks off in Mexico and Guadalajara on June 11 and will feature 48 nations taking part in 104 games, with the finale set for July 19 in East Rutherford, N.J.

Toronto is hosting six games, including Canada’s first of the tournament, a matchup with Bosnia-Herzegovina on June 12.

Seven games will be staged at B.C. Place, starting on June 13 with a battle between Australia and Turkey. Canada will play its second and third group stage games there, too.

The province is expecting about 350,000 soccer fans to descend on Vancouver for the tournament, and another million to visit the province over the following five years, Eby said.

“All told, we’re expecting about a billion dollars in economic impact on B.C.’s economy coming from this world class sporting event,” he said.

Last June, the B.C. government pegged the provincial cost of hosting at between $532 million and $624 million, including a $196-million upgrade of the 43-year-old stadium.

B.C. Place is owned and operated by PavCo, a provincial Crown corporation.

The province plans to reveal the total cost for hosting the World Cup before the games begin, Eby said.

“I understand the important need to have the final and full accounting of the cost of the event available to the public,” he said. “Our intention was to release that with our partners closer to the date of the first game. But I have asked our team to bring that forward to ensure that we have the total out to the public by the end of the month.”

Hosting also brings benefits that won’t show up on a balance sheet, the premier added.

“(The cost) is a key piece of information for the public,” he said. “But the legacies that will be created by this game, whether it’s community sports fields or the improvements here to the stadium that create lines of revenue or the opportunity to develop and enhance relationships with business partners or tourists from around the world is significant and hard to understate.”

First opened in 1983, B.C. Place is no stranger to major events. The opening and closing ceremonies for the 2010 Olympics were held there, and the venue played host to the 2015 Women’s World Cup.

Taylor Swift also played the final three shows of her Eras Tour there in December 2024.

In recent months, three new elevators have been added, a new high-definition scoreboard has been installed, and locker rooms have been upgraded. A temporary grass playing surface — complete with irrigation and ventilation systems — has also been installed over the venue’s artificial turf.

The facelift was necessary to meet FIFA’s requirements for hosting World Cup games, Eby said, but the renovation will also help attract other major events to the stadium.

“The real story of these upgrades is not just about what happens during the World Cup,” said Anne Kang, B.C.’s minister of arts, tourism, culture and sport. “It’s what happens long after the final whistle.

“The investments we’ve made here at B.C. Place are creating a lasting legacy for British Columbians. These upgrades will meet FIFA’s requirements and ensure B.C. Place remains accessible, inclusive and a world-class venue for decades to come.”

Upgrades to the stadium come as uncertainty hangs around the future of one of the building’s main tenants.

The Vancouver Whitecaps have been up for sale since December 2024, and an investor group recently submitted a bid to Major League Soccer asking to buy the team and move it to Las Vegas.

The club has repeatedly cited revenue limitations at B.C. Place as part of the difficulty in attracting a local buyer.

Eby is set to meet with representatives from the Whitecaps, MLS, the City of Vancouver and local First Nations this week to discuss the issue.

“Our goal is, with Major League Soccer, with the owners, is to work with them to identify what it’s going to take to keep the ‘Caps in British Columbia and to work with them, be creative, put everything on the table and see what we can come to in terms of keeping this team here,” he said Tuesday.

“This meeting, while important, is not going to resolve this entire issue. But I hope it’s an important signal to MLS, to the ownership of the Whitecaps, of the commitment of the government to work with them to address their concerns.”

This report by The Canadian Press was first published May 12, 2026.

Gemma Karstens-Smith, The Canadian Press