Is hosting the FIFA World Cup worth it? Some Canadians have cold feet, survey finds

A new poll shows a majority of people in Metro Vancouver don’t think hosting the much-hyped tournament is worth the cost.

Four days away from hosting the world’s biggest sporting event, there appears to be some cold feet among Canadians.

In a poll released Tuesday by the Angus Reid Institute, seven out of 10 surveyed in Metro Vancouver and Greater Toronto say they don’t think the cost of hosting the FIFA World Cup in their community is worth it.

The results come in light of soaring costs, street closures and summer festival cancellations.

“We’re finding, I think, a lot of frustrations with the cost being borne by the public for the World Cup—and not just the monetary cost,” explained Jon Roe with Angus Reid Institute.

The latest cost estimate for Vancouver’s seven-game hosting duties is $729 million. Even with a more modest estimate, 51 per cent of those surveyed in Metro Vancouver say it’s a poor investment, while only one in five thinks it’s money well spent.

“Theres a bit fo frustration around, I think, this cone of secrecy that has been around these agreements, that has been around Vancouver and FIFA and Toronto and FIFA,” said Roe.

The B.C. NDP emphasized the projected 5 billion viewers taking in the city’s scenery, predicting $1 billion in GDP through tourism over the next five years. “

This is an investment not only for the seven games—I know that momentum is growing,” said Anne Kang, the province’s tourism minister.

Critics have questioned whether those predictions are reliable.

“This government is going to try to cling to (the idea) that every tourist coming to Vancouver over the next five years is strictly coming because they saw their country play a soccer game—once,” said Peter Milobar, B.C. Conservative finance critic.

The Angus Reid Institute survey was conducted online from May 7 to 11, among a randomized sample of 1,803 Canadian adults who are members of the Angus Reid Forum. The company said a probability sample of that size would carry a margin of error of plus or minus two percentage points, 19 times out of 20.