Over a month of FIFA celebrations has come to an end as Spain came out on top Sunday with the tournament’s final blow of the whistle. But this is just the beginning of the soccer dream in Toronto, said Mayor Olivia Chow.
Soccer fever took over Toronto through packed fan marches, people wearing jerseys of every colour, a stadium buzzing with thousands and watch parties taking place in every corner of the city. Fans’ excitement for games did not dull even through smoke warnings, heatwaves and thunderstorms.
At a news conference, Chow reminisced about parties in the streets after Ghana scored at the 95th minute, the giant 100-metre Croatia flag unfurling during fan parades and the sea of Portuguese fans cheering outside a hotel for Cristiano Ronaldo.
Tens of thousands of people were in the city “loving the game joyously,” she said.
Chow said about 250,000 people attended the six matches held at Toronto Stadium. Another 350,000 people attended the FIFA Fan Festival and nearly 60,600 went to Nathan Phillips Square to watch games other than the final, she said.
“Toronto is a soccer city,” said Chow. “[It was] an unquestionable success thanks to the countless folks working day in and day out.”
Toronto fans gather one last time to cheer on Argentina and Spain in the World Cup Final
Hosting the World Cup in the city was no easy feat, and happened thanks to round-the-clock work by several teams, said Paul Johnson, Toronto city manager.
“The trophy that wasn’t given out yesterday is the trophy that I’d like to give out to the team that helped make this a reality here in Toronto,” said Johnson, adding the work is nowhere near done with cleanup and tear down still taking place.
About 61 per cent of Torontonians believe hosting World Cup matches has been good for the city, according to a survey of 1,000 residents by Liaison Strategies Toronto Pulse. In comparison, 29 per cent said it was bad for the city and 10 per cent said they were not sure.
When asked whether Toronto should host more international sporting events, 63 per cent of respondents agreed the city should step up to the plate again.
David Valentin, principal at Liaison Strategies, said about 18 per cent changed commutes or travel plans due to the tournament and crowds. Another 18 per cent avoided downtown Toronto, he said.
“Torontonians are largely positive about the World Cup, but they are also living through the costs and inconvenience of hosting it,” he said.
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Nine in 10 visitors said they would come back to visit Toronto within the next two years, according to survey data from Destination Toronto and Destination Ontario.
Chow said over half of the spending in Toronto on game days came from visitors outside of Canada. Those statistics go to show just how great the city is, she said.
Chow has also promised to build more soccer infrastructure.
Johnson said transit “performed extremely well” in the past month and was not the “armageddon” people expected. He said there were huge increases in pedestrian traffic and over 2,000 bikes being valet at Toronto Stadium on game days.
Sharon Bollenbach, executive director of World Cup Toronto, said fan festival attendance was strong over the 23 days it was open, with only two days being fully cancelled and one delayed due to the weather.
Bollenbach said it would be “weeks and months” before data would be available on the full economic impact on the city.
But the city’s $5 million funding shortfall should mostly be covered by an additional $1 million in funding from FIFA and extra policing resources from the federal government, Johnson said.
He said the legacy of the games will be evident in the city from repairs at BMO field to the soccer hub at Centennial Park.
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“It started with a roar that still reverberates through the city with Canada’s [first] goal … and ended with that amazing Portugal and Croatia experience,” he said.
Chow said she kept her word about not touching property tax dollars for the city’s $380 million World Cup budget. She said Toronto’s former budget chief, who she hired to support during the tournament, had “some confidence” that they would not need to use any tax payer dollars for the event.
