JAY GOLDBERG: Ford is skeptical about FIFA — and he’s right

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Ontario Premier Doug Ford has finally found a taxpayer boondoggle he isn’t quite ready to buy into.

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Toronto Mayor John Tory and most of Toronto’s city councillors have been trying to get the public and the provincial government to buy into the idea of Toronto hosting five World Cup games when North America hosts the tournament in 2026.

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But Ford is rightly balking at the constantly ballooning price tag.

“Every day this cost keeps going up and up and up,” noted Ford.

The idea of hosting World Cup games in Toronto might appear to be attractive on the surface. Yet, digging into the numbers shows why it makes very little sense for taxpayers.

The first essential point to recognize is that Toronto would only host five of a total of 80 World Cup games to be played in North America in 2026.

The number five matters because it means that Toronto will have to take on all of the costs of getting the city ready to host World Cup games, but would only get a small fraction of the benefit.

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As of right now, the cost of hosting five World Cup games in Toronto is $290 million. That equates to $644,000 for every minute games would be played on BMO Field.

And the potential upside?

The economic benefits, according to an analysis done by city staff, are likely to come in at $307 million.

That means there’s just a $17-million difference between the supposed economic benefits Toronto would see and all of the costs of hosting the games, including major renovations to BMO field.

Even if costs go 6% over budget, which it’s pretty safe to assume they will, hosting five FIFA games will be a net economic loss for Toronto as the proposal currently stands.

It’s also important to recognize who pays for the costs and who enjoys the benefits. Costs will be borne by taxpayers. The benefits will go to the Toronto tourism industry.

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Is it really fair to ask hardworking taxpayers to foot the bill just so one sector of the economy can enjoy some positive by-products of hosting the games?

Then there’s the fact that Tory is asking other levels of government to foot part of the bill. That means taxpayers living in areas in which their local economies will receive zero economic benefit from hosting the games will be stuck with part of the final tab. Tory is asking the feds and the province to pay $90 million each, at a minimum.

If Prime Minister Justin Trudeau and Ford commit to doing just that, taxpayers from St. John’s to Timmins to Calgary will be picking up a significant share of the cost.

And, as Ford rightly noted, costs just keep climbing.

When the city of Vancouver first committed to hosting the 2010 Winter Olympics, costs were pegged at just under $1 billion. But by the time all was said and done, costs came in at over $3.5 billion.

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If hosting the five World Cup games in Toronto experiences a cost increase similar to what happened in Vancouver, taxpayers will be on the hook for over $1 billion.

It’s clear as day that it doesn’t make sense for taxpayers to be on the hook for the cost of these games. But proponents like Tory can and should turn to the private sector. Allowing for sponsorships and convincing FIFA to permit sponsors to keep some of the ticket revenue could offer a viable path forward without taking taxpayers to the cleaners.

While these World Cup games have already been “awarded” to host cities, no funding model has been finalized. That means there’s still time to find a sound solution that doesn’t rely on fleecing taxpayers’ wallets.

Ford should say no to Tory’s ask on FIFA, but that doesn’t mean Toronto’s bid needs to end.

— Jay Goldberg is the Ontario director at the Canadian Taxpayers Federation