Alberta Needs to Make FIFA Bid a Top Priority
Over the last two years, there is no segment of Alberta’s economy that has been untouched by the impacts of public health restrictions. While everyone in the business community has faced their fair share of turbulence, the province’s tourism sector has been disproportionately devastated.
Alberta’s tourism industry was incredibly strong and self-sustaining prior to the COVID-19 outbreak, recording 34.7 million visitors and $8.2 billion in tourism expenditures in 2019. Indeed, the province provided some support to our operators in the form of funding and a Tourism Levy break that helped some businesses on the brink of permanent closure remain open.
However, the Government of Alberta has yet to provide support towards what is a once-in-a-lifetime opportunity that has the potential to make our province an international destination for major events for the foreseeable future.
That event is the FIFA World Cup 2026.
Explore Edmonton and the City of Edmonton have been working with incredible diligence to put forward the best possible submission bid which has also been strongly supported by the federal government. Albertans eagerly awaited a commitment from the UCP in Budget 2022 that would go towards adding the finishing touches on our bid.
Crickets.
Make no mistake – a failure to lock down this World Cup bid would not only adversely impact the future of our recovering tourism sector, it will have profound impacts on Alberta’s ability to host international events in the future.
Edmonton’s bid is in jeopardy. The British Columbia government has reversed a previous decision to withdraw their bid to host games in Vancouver and is hoping to sway FIFA’s position as we approach full time. Our western neighbour has a demonstrated history of putting it all on the line for the opportunity to host major international sporting events like the Olympics and Paralympics, events they continue to benefit from more than one decade later.
Our province has missed out on the opportunity to host five major international events in the past decade, including the withdrawn Calgary 2026 Olympic bid. While that specific failure cannot be laid at the feet of the provincial government, the UCP is running the risk of a late-game turnover that could forever impact our province’s reputation when it comes to future international event bidding.
In fact, this very government was a critical player in ensuring Edmonton was one of two hub-cities for the 2020 Stanley Cup Playoffs. This government spent $4 million on advertising alone as part of its efforts to see Rogers Place host the playoffs and award the Stanley Cup. Even though that event didn’t see a single seat purchased, the province projected that it would result in nearly 2,000 temporary jobs and almost $39 million added to our GDP in addition to $5.9 million in tax revenue.
Here is some perspective on the economic impact Alberta could benefit from if it is awarded hosting rights for FIFA World Cup 2026. Edmonton generated about $30 million to our city’s economy for the two qualifying games we hosted in November, including around 24,000 hotel rooms booked. Just imagine the thousands of jobs and hundreds of millions of dollars hosting multiple World Cup games could mean for our city and our province. Early indicators and research from tourism experts suggest it could be around $600 million of economic benefit – on the low end.
City Council and the bid campaign team have already done the work – the Government of Alberta need only chip in pennies on the dollar to secure what would be the most significant international event we have hosted since the 1988 Calgary Olympics. It would also revitalize our international reputation as hosts and as a tourism destination to an expected global audience of 3.5 billion people.
It’s not just Edmonton that stands to gain from being awarded hosting rights; rather, it is the whole of the province. Communities around Alberta will be taking part in a 34-day fan festival that will truly inject significant dollars into local economies while aiding efforts to showcase all Alberta has to offer, not just our capital.
Alberta needs this. If Alberta is truly “Open for Business” as our government suggests, not providing the necessary support for World Cup 2026 would send the international business community the exact opposite message.
We are in the eleventh hour of the bidding process as the host cities will be announced this month. The provincial government has yet to commit either way, and Albertans deserve an answer.
This government has shown they talk the talk for attracting business. It’s time for them to walk the walk.