Toronto, ON: The Canadian Taxpayers Federation is calling on Toronto Mayor Olivia Chow to cancel Toronto’s bid to host a handful of 2026 World Cup games after the Toronto Star revealed that former mayor John Tory signed agreements with FIFA that won’t be disclosed to the public.

“The city shouldn’t put taxpayers on the hook for a secret FIFA deal,” Jay Goldberg, CTF Ontario Director, said. “It’s taxpayers’ money, so we deserve to see the details. And if this is such a good deal, then why won’t the city be transparent with taxpayers?”

The city estimates that hosting the 2026 World Cup games will cost taxpayers $290 million, with at least $90 million coming from Toronto city hall. Economic benefits have been pegged by the city at $307 million. That means even if the cost of hosting the games goes six per cent over budget, the World Cup will be a net economic loser for the city of Toronto.

Prior experiences with other major sporting events suggests that cost overruns higher than six per cent are virtually certain.

Chow hasn’t seen the details of the agreement, according to the Star.

“Chow says the city is broke, so the city should walk away from this secret deal instead of hiking taxes to pay for a handful of soccer games,” Goldberg said.