June 9 – The Canadian men’s team may have pulled out of playing a friendly game last week as the players negotiate over 2022 World Cup bonus payments, but the City of Edmonton has confirmed it is all-in with its bid to host matches at the 2026 World Cup.
FIFA will announce the host cities for the 2026 World Cup in New York on June 16. The United 2026 bid proposed ten host cities in the US, and three each in Mexico and Canada.
Edmonton is one of the three Canadian cities bidding – alongside Toronto and late entrant Vancouver.
The city’s reaffirmation of its hosting ambition comes as it completed the formal signing of an agreement with FIFA that includes investment guarantees as well as a shortlist of firms who will carry out improvement work on facilities at the Commonwealth Stadium and training facilities to make them World Cup ready.
Traci Bednard, CEO of Explore Edmonton, said: “We are more excited than ever by the partnership between FIFA and the City of Edmonton. We have had tremendous experiences in hosting FIFA tournaments in the past, not only in delivering great matches and events, but also in inspiring future generations of soccer players and fans. In 2026, Edmonton will be ready to deliver once again.”
Edmonton has a track record of successfully hosting FIFA World Cup including matches at the Women’s World Cup 2015 which laid the groundwork for the recent breakthrough of international women’s game.
Edmonton was very much at the heart of the promotion of the women’s game having also hosted the FIFA U-19 Women’s World Championship 2002, the FIFA U-20 World Cup 2007, and the FIFA U-20 Women’s World Cup 2014.
Last November, Edmonton hosted Canada’s World Cup 2022 qualification match against Mexico, selling over 51,000 tickets despite winter temperatures of -9˚ Celsius.
A big part of Edmonton’s hosting bid has been demonstrating inclusivity and the depth of local support, with public surveys showing a 93% favourability for the event. As a venue Edmonton will clearly bring a culturally different flavour and experience to the world’s travelling football fans, an experience quite different from other FIFA host cities. The city set up the FIFA Champions Committee, to advise and promote the work of its candidature. The Committee is chaired by Chief Billy Morin, chief of the Enoch Cree Nation, which forms an especially key part of Edmonton’s candidature given the city’s location on Treaty Six territory.
In a recent exclusive interview with Insideworldfootball, Canada’s highest profile player Alphonso Davies, who grew up in Edmonton, said: “Whenever an international soccer event has come to Edmonton, people have supported the events very well. Edmonton is a beautiful, diverse place, and I have no doubt they will accept the rest of the world exactly how they accepted me and my family when we moved here. Edmonton has some great facilities and there are a lot of things happening in the city, especially in the summer seasons.”
See: Canada’s quiet football revolution is getting noisier – just ask Edmonton
Exclusive: Alphonso Davies opens a window on Edmonton and a World Cup 2026 dream
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