Vancouver is back in the running to host games when the FIFA World Cup comes to Canada in 2026.

 

FIFA announced Thursday that the city has joined Edmonton and Toronto as candidate host cities after officials made a visit to BC Place.

 

Canada is co-hosting the tournament with the United States and Mexico, and nearly two dozen cities across North America are in the running to host games.

 

B.C. pulled out of contention in 2018 with Premier John Horgan citing the unknown costs of hosting the event, but he recently said the province was open to entertaining a bid.

 

A statement from Melanie Mark, the minister of tourism, arts, culture and sport, says hosting the event would be a once-in-a-generation opportunity for soccer fans and the province's tourism sector.

 

Mark says Horgan has given her a mandate to support the tourism and sport sectors as they recover from the impacts of the pandemic and hosting World Cup games in 2026 would “serve as a beacon for B.C.'s tourism industry” after two challenging years.