The party is almost over, now it’s time for the post-mortem.
When the final whistle blows at the World Cup Final in New Jersey on Sunday, Toronto’s duties as co-host of the planet’s most popular sporting event will come to an end. The city hosted its last game for the tournament more than two weeks ago, on July 2, and this weekend will stage the final edition of its Fan Festival watch party for the climactic showdown between Spain and Argentina.
So after six games, thousands of visitors, and millions of public dollars spent, was Toronto’s World Cup a success?
“There’s an argument to be made that it could have been better, but it could have been worse,” said Tyeshia Redden, an assistant professor of urban planning at the University of Toronto who specializes in mega sporting events.
She said the World Cup “went really well in terms of social impact” for Toronto, citing lasting amenities such as upgrades to city-owned BMO Field, and a new training ground at Centennial Park. The city also “nailed it” when it came to being a fun host, she said, as the crowds that packed bars and spilled out of patios since the games began June 11 can attest.
But as Redden and others predicted, there are signs the economic boom projected by World Cup’s boosters didn’t fully materialize. She argues the public was oversold on the benefits of the tournament, which was spread out across 16 host cities in Canada, Mexico and the U.S.
A full accounting of Toronto’s games — including whether the city stayed within its $380 million hosting budget — may not be possible for months, although city staff plan to release early data next week.
Here’s what we know so far:
Fan buzz
Matt Serson, a director with the Canada supporters group the Voyageurs, has been to World Cup matches in Qatar, Vancouver and Seattle. Compared to other hosts Toronto did “exceptionally well” on logistics like transit, stadium access and fan zones around the venue, all key factors in the match-going experience, he said.
“You could breathe, there wasn’t tonnes of lineups,” he said, while in Vancouver and Seattle, crowds were “crushed” into a small area around the venue, which made for “uneasy” gamedays.
Serson was particularly impressed with the temporary streetcar hub the TTC built near BMO Field, and how accommodating police and other officials were in helping the Voyageurs organize a march of 1,000 fans to the stadium ahead of Canada’s June 12 clash with Bosnia-Herzegovina.
Serson, who is from Ottawa, was also blown away by the atmosphere in Toronto during the World Cup. Even on days when there wasn’t a local match, the streets were filled with people wearing their team’s jerseys, and viewing parties at Nathan Phillips Square and STACKT Market were hopping. The city “had a real buzz to it,” he said. In Vancouver “you didn’t have that same atmosphere.”
Feast or famine for businesses
The World Cup was projected to bring 300,000 visitors to Toronto and, according to an assessment prepared for FIFA ahead of the games, generate $940 million in “economic output” for the GTA.
For Toronto’s bars and restaurants however, the event was a mixed bag, said Kelly Higginson, CEO of Restaurants Canada. Overall, she said, sales were up 3 per cent over the same period a year earlier — roughly the same as inflation.
But, said Higginson, that masked a feast or famine dynamic. While bars and restaurants showing World Cup action — or those near BMO Field — were busy, others suffered, as people avoided downtown and companies told employees not to come to the office on Toronto game days.
“Some businesses saw the benefits but many that we have spoken to did not,” she said, noting that some establishments made investments and hiring commitments in anticipation of a surge in customers that never came. She said one large downtown restaurant operator said the late June and early July were “a disaster for sales.”
The World Cup also delivered uneven results for Toronto area hotels. Occupancy rates in the second week of the tournament were 72 per cent, down from 86 per cent in the same period last year, according to the Greater Toronto Hotel Association. The group plans to release final numbers next week but, according to preliminary data, the week ending July 3 — Toronto’s last as host — was better.
Traffic disaster averted
Getting around Toronto during the World Cup wasn’t the nightmare some had feared, despite concerns about the city’s infamous gridlock. The city appeared to successfully implement a mobility plan that added transit service to tournament destinations, and encouraged residents to avoid driving.
During the six match days, car volumes on the Gardiner Expressway were between 10 and 30 per cent lower than normal, according to city data. Car travel times downtown grew by as much as 24 per cent, which officials attributed to heavy traffic near the stadium and road closures around the venue and Fan Festival — the city-run watch party at Fort York and the Bentway. But citywide, there was no consistent increase in gridlock on matchdays.
Meanwhile, TTC ridership on five corridors serving the World Cup jumped 40 per cent compared to last year, a boon for an agency that has been struggling to recoup ridership post-pandemic.
Fraught Fan Festival
While much of Toronto’s World Cup ran smoothly, the Fan Festival, which cost the city an estimated $25 million, was hit with cancellations, problems with crowd management, and worker complaints.
The June 11 edition showing the opening matches from Mexico was abruptly evacuated due to bad weather, and fans who had paid up to about $360 for “premium experience” were told they wouldn’t receive refunds. The July 15 event was shut down over wildfire smoke.
Long lines on June 12 meant that hundreds of fans missed the start of Canada’s opening game, and attendees complained about a lack of water stations. Two weeks later hundreds of people — even some who had secured free general admission tickets — were turned away after the city said the festival, which was showing crucial final group stage matches, had reached capacity.
In early July, almost three weeks into the event, some festival bar staff said they had yet to be paid by the company subcontracted to handle beverage operations. CTV reported July 9 that workers had begun receiving their wages.
Questions about costs linger
The city got help with its $380 million hosting budget from the federal and provincial governments, which together contributed about $200 million. Toronto was expecting to make up its $180 million share in part through a temporary increase to its hotel tax, which would raise about $57 million, and the sale of premium tickets to the Fan Festival, which would generate about $3 million.
But with hotel bookings not as strong as hoped, and the city yet to release festival sales figures, Coun. Josh Matlow said he’s not certain the tournament came in on budget. The Toronto-St. Paul’s representative said the games were “managed well” and “were a lot of fun,” but “it’s questionable whether or the not the city’s decision to spend that much money was wise.” He wants Toronto’s auditor general to do a value-for-money audit.
A spokesperson for Mayor Olivia Chow said she believes the city has done “a great job managing the World Cup festivities.” Once the tournament ends there will be a “full analysis” to “evaluate our performance … and determine what lessons can be carried forward for future events,” he said.
