The team spearheading Toronto’s efforts to co-host the 2026 FIFA World Cup is “confident” the tournament will deliver “‘profound’ benefits to the city, despite public skepticism about its high costs,” according to Ben Spurr of the TORONTO STAR. The city estimates it will cost $380M to host the half-dozen games, a “significant increase” from the $45M figure the council was given in 2018 when it signed onto the joint North American bid (that number did not include security expenditures). FIFA Chief Tournament Officer Peter Montopoli “framed the six games” the city is scheduled to host as an “unparalleled opportunity to showcase Toronto on the global stage.” Spurr noted it is “unclear whether Torontonians will embrace the city’s plans” to co-host the tournament. A poll conducted by Maru Public Opinion for CityNews earlier this month found “63 per cent of Toronto residents don’t want their governments paying for major sporting events like the Olympics or World Cup.” Toronto city manager Paul Johnson dismissed the suggestion that, as just one of 16 host venues spread across three countries, Toronto “might not get the global attention it’s banking on.” Johnson stressed he is working with multiple divisions to ensure the money spent on the event “delivers benefits that will endure long after ‘six matches that the majority of people in this city will never attend’” (TORONTO STAR, 10/29).
SBJ’s Austin Karp, Taylor Bloom, Chris Smith and Joe Lemire recap Day 1 of SBJ Dealmakers in Washington, D.C. and preview what to expect on Day 2 of the conference.
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