[SubHuman]

How much will the World Cup disrupt other usual events in 2026 at Exhibition Place?
The matches are June 12 to July 2, and the fan fest site is The Bentway, not beside the stadium.
https://www.toronto.ca/news/city-of...e-bentway-for-its-fifa-fan-festival-location/
Will the Argos and Toronto FC have schedules with all road games for those three weeks, or maybe have to arrange a nominal 'home' game or two in Hamilton? They haven't announced their 2026 schedules yet.
As I mentioned well over a year ago in this thread,
https://urbantoronto.ca/forum/threads/exhibition-place.29245/post-2080748
-- I assumed having the IndyCar race as usual in mid to late July would be no problem. Apparently their 2025 schedule was announced on June 13, 2024, but now in mid-August they have yet to announce their 2026 schedule, with an Indianapolis Star writer and this guy on YouTube who follows the series both suggesting Toronto may be a problem.
"Airport"? Despite my silly track layout doodles in that previous post, I somehow doubt that would be realistic and practical. Downsview now has the "stadium", and it's difficult to imagine the island airport and airlines shutting down everything for several days (well, at least not without getting paid a lot of money, presumably more than what Exhibition Place costs them).

 

[narduch]

How much will the World Cup disrupt other usual events in 2026 at Exhibition Place?
The matches are June 12 to July 2, and the fan fest site is The Bentway, not beside the stadium.
https://www.toronto.ca/news/city-of...e-bentway-for-its-fifa-fan-festival-location/
Will the Argos and Toronto FC have schedules with all road games for those three weeks, or maybe have to arrange a nominal 'home' game or two in Hamilton? They haven't announced their 2026 schedules yet.
As I mentioned well over a year ago in this thread,
https://urbantoronto.ca/forum/threads/exhibition-place.29245/post-2080748
-- I assumed having the IndyCar race as usual in mid to late July would be no problem. Apparently their 2025 schedule was announced on June 13, 2024, but now in mid-August they have yet to announce their 2026 schedule, with an Indianapolis Star writer and this guy on YouTube who follows the series both suggesting Toronto may be a problem.
"Airport"? Despite my silly track layout doodles in that previous post, I somehow doubt that would be realistic and practical. Downsview now has the "stadium", and it's difficult to imagine the island airport and airlines shutting down everything for several days (well, at least not without getting paid a lot of money, presumably more than what Exhibition Place costs them).

The Argos won't be playing at BMO until after the World Cup games are finished.

TFC won't be able to have any home games up to 1 month before the first match.

 

[dufferin1]

How much will the World Cup disrupt other usual events in 2026 at Exhibition Place?
The matches are June 12 to July 2, and the fan fest site is The Bentway, not beside the stadium.
https://www.toronto.ca/news/city-of...e-bentway-for-its-fifa-fan-festival-location/
Will the Argos and Toronto FC have schedules with all road games for those three weeks, or maybe have to arrange a nominal 'home' game or two in Hamilton? They haven't announced their 2026 schedules yet.
As I mentioned well over a year ago in this thread,
https://urbantoronto.ca/forum/threads/exhibition-place.29245/post-2080748
-- I assumed having the IndyCar race as usual in mid to late July would be no problem. Apparently their 2025 schedule was announced on June 13, 2024, but now in mid-August they have yet to announce their 2026 schedule, with an Indianapolis Star writer and this guy on YouTube who follows the series both suggesting Toronto may be a problem.
"Airport"? Despite my silly track layout doodles in that previous post, I somehow doubt that would be realistic and practical. Downsview now has the "stadium", and it's difficult to imagine the island airport and airlines shutting down everything for several days (well, at least not without getting paid a lot of money, presumably more than what Exhibition Place costs them).

MLS will be paused for the duration of the World Cup

 

[Mihairokov]

TFC won't be able to have any home games up to 1 month before the first match.

To be more precise, World Cup facilities cannot be booked or used for a month prior to their first matches, and they cannot be used for friendly matches in the leadup to the World Cup.

 

[SubHuman]

MLS will be paused for the duration of the World Cup

https://www.reuters.com/sports/soccer/mls-go-hiatus-during-2026-world-cup-2024-12-07/
That seems like overkill. The 2018 hiatus was only nine days.
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/2018_Major_League_Soccer_season

To be more precise, World Cup facilities cannot be booked or used for a month prior to their first matches, and they cannot be used for friendly matches in the leadup to the World Cup.

And I suppose that could lead to MLSE then wanting to use the stadium as much as possible in July and August for TFC and Argos.
Maybe having the IndyCar race on the first weekend in June (it was in June once, in 2015 to avoid Pan-Am Games) could make sense (and they're not far from the preceding race in Detroit). They tear down everything quickly after it's over, and it doesn't use the stadium.

 

[Mihairokov]

That seems like overkill. The 2018 hiatus was only nine days.

The 2018 WC wasn't in the US and directly impacting eyeballs on MLS in shared markets.

And I suppose that could lead to MLSE then wanting to use the stadium as much as possible in July and August for TFC and Argos.

We'll see how the schedule shakes out but it's going to be busy for MLS. For CFL particularly they're losing two venues for a ~month and a half/two months and so we'll see if they simply send those teams on the road for six straight weeks or push their home games to alternate venues.

 

[rdaner]

I dismissed the speculation about games being moved from the US for World Cup but now I’m beginning to wonder. Regardless I hope that Toronto can accommodate them!

 

[Richard White]

https://www.reuters.com/sports/soccer/mls-go-hiatus-during-2026-world-cup-2024-12-07/
That seems like overkill. The 2018 hiatus was only nine days.
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/2018_Major_League_Soccer_season

Overkill yes but it is likely due to the need to protect the turf. MLB is the same way when it comes to the world series, they control aspects of the stadium like the roof to prevent any concerns surrounding the conditions of the stadium. They may also want to prevent questions around possible advantages or disadvantages from people messing around.

And I suppose that could lead to MLSE then wanting to use the stadium as much as possible in July and August for TFC and Argos.
Maybe having the IndyCar race on the first weekend in June (it was in June once, in 2015 to avoid Pan-Am Games) could make sense (and they're not far from the preceding race in Detroit). They tear down everything quickly after it's over, and it doesn't use the stadium.

Possibly. The games in Toronto only go until July 2nd however the event itself goes until July 19th. I suspect they may want the stadium to remain in tip-top condition under their control until the world cup is completely over.

Just incase a backup venue is needed.

 

[rdaner]

Just read that Emirates Airlines is pulling its sponsorship from US venues of the World Cup.

 

[SubHuman]

... The games in Toronto only go until July 2nd however the event itself goes until July 19th. I suspect they may want the stadium to remain in tip-top condition under their control until the world cup is completely over.

Just incase a backup venue is needed.

This is more wishful thinking than reality.

It's too late to make drastic changes now.

Fifa will power through it

There's not a single quote in there from even a source at FIFA of this happening.
... - no games will be moved from the US.

These things are planned so far ahead of time, it's difficult to see them somehow making big changes now. As much power as FIFA is perceived to have, I don't think they could just suddenly order cities like Toronto to host more games than planned, for an extra two more weeks.

We also don't know whether or not the IndyCar race has a definite long-term future. Like other events and festivals, they depend on corporate sponsors to exist, and some of them are disappearing.

Ontario’s Sound of Music Festival Is on the Verge of Shutting Down Without 'Urgent Financial Support'

“With sharp declines in public arts funding and sponsorship, our future is now uncertain,” said event organizers on the festival’s website.

ca.billboard.com

The title sponsor of the race had been Honda Canada since 2009, with contracts to use Exhibition Place being renewed for 3 year terms. Then for the last two years it became "Ontario Honda Dealers", with the agreements with the city renewed for only one year at a time, giving the appearance of a temporary stop-gap arrangement to give the promoters time to try to find another major corporate sponsor.
The race was created in 1986 solely because of Molson, at the height of the "Beer Wars". When they stepped away in the mid-2000s, the Vancouver race ended for good, and the Toronto race had one year (2007) of being sponsored by a small brewery that no one had heard of before -- or since, because it quickly went into bankruptcy, and the 2008 race was cancelled.
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Steelback_Brewery#Bankruptcy
(The explanation given to the public was that the re-organizing of IndyCar racing, with two leagues unifying, left no room to fit a Toronto race into the schedule, although this excuse seemed quite dubious even at the time.)

 

[narduch]

Just read that Emirates Airlines is pulling its sponsorship from US venues of the World Cup.

You have a link for that? That doesn't seem real

 

[narduch]

These things are planned so far ahead of time, it's difficult to see them somehow making big changes now. As much power as FIFA is perceived to have, I don't think they could just suddenly order cities like Toronto to host more games than planned, for an extra two more weeks.

We also don't know whether or not the IndyCar race has a definite long-term future. Like other events and festivals, they depend on corporate sponsors to exist, and some of them are disappearing.

Ontario’s Sound of Music Festival Is on the Verge of Shutting Down Without 'Urgent Financial Support'

“With sharp declines in public arts funding and sponsorship, our future is now uncertain,” said event organizers on the festival’s website.

ca.billboard.com

The title sponsor of the race had been Honda Canada since 2009, with contracts to use Exhibition Place being renewed for 3 year terms. Then for the last two years it became "Ontario Honda Dealers", with the agreements with the city renewed for only one year at a time, giving the appearance of a temporary stop-gap arrangement to give the promoters time to try to find another major corporate sponsor.
The race was created in 1986 solely because of Molson, at the height of the "Beer Wars". When they stepped away in the mid-2000s, the Vancouver race ended for good, and the Toronto race had one year (2007) of being sponsored by a small brewery that no one had heard of before -- or since, because it quickly went into bankruptcy, and the 2008 race was cancelled.
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Steelback_Brewery#Bankruptcy
(The explanation given to the public was that the re-organizing of IndyCar racing, with two leagues unifying, left no room to fit a Toronto race into the schedule, although this excuse seemed quite dubious even at the time.)

At most they can only play matches every 3 days to help preserve the grass. And even that would be pushing it.

A few weeks ago I took a look at the schedule and I think at most you could add 2 group stage games in Toronto and possibly some knock out games.

But I don't expect that to happen. I expect it to be full steam ahead

 

[SubHuman]

Some more detail on what I mentioned in a post above on Aug. 11 :
https://www.sportsbusinessjournal.c...ars-toronto-race-might-see-new-venue-in-2026/

... The viability of the race’s future is “no longer in question,” with GSRP co-owners Kim Green and Kevin Savoree telling members of the paddock in recent weeks that “plans for an IndyCar return in 2026 are a go.” The “most likely option” to hold the race remains within Toronto’s city limits, as the possibly option is the “now-defunct Downsview Airport.” Its existence within Toronto city limits would “allow the city to continue to provide the funds and assistance necessary” to put on the event. Brown noted complications around continuing to host the annual IndyCar race in downtown Toronto comes with BMO Field hosting five group stage matches for the 2026 FIFA World Cup. Each August, Exhibition Place plays host to the Canadian National Exhibition. CNE’s annual spot on the calendar would “seem to mean an IndyCar race anywhere in the greater Toronto area would need to be held by Aug. 16,” ...

I'm skeptical of this rumour.
I don't understand how World Cup matches in Toronto, the last one on July 2nd, would somehow stop the race from happening later in July as usual. And I'm not sure what definite plans for Exhibition Place would be putting the viability of the race "in question". Expanding the trade centre is just a vague notion, and the second hotel and Esports/Entertainment venue does not appear to be happening any time soon.

Downsview Airport (YZD) is going to be developed eventually, and Rogers Stadium is already there right in the middle of it. An entirely new track layout would have to be planned and paved -- not a cheap prospect. It might have worked if it had started out here in 1986 (or in 1978, or 1968, the preceding times the proposals for a street circuit at the CNE grounds were rejected), but not so much now. Despite potentially providing better views of the track from the grandstands (without so many buildings in the way), and not using any major roads like Lake Shore Blvd, moving the race now would risk losing the attention of casual spectators who are familiar with Exhibition Place, and more importantly the remaining corporate sponsors might see the event going away from downtown to Downsview as a being a negative move from their perspective.

 

[Richard White]

I don't understand how World Cup matches in Toronto, the last one on July 2nd, would somehow stop the race from happening later in July as usual

As I said before, they may want to keep it as a backup venue and the World Cup runs untik the 19th of July.

Not only that but CNE prep starts at the start of August. If you go too late into July, the two events may clash scheduling wise.

 

[SubHuman]

... We'll see how the schedule shakes out but it's going to be busy for MLS. For CFL particularly they're losing two venues for a ~month and a half/two months and so we'll see if they simply send those teams on the road for six straight weeks or push their home games to alternate venues.

Argos will apparently have three "home" games played elsewhere, one each in Regina, Winnipeg, and Hamilton.

Argos to Play Select Home Games Away From BMO Field Next Summer During 2026 FIFA World Cup - Toronto Argonauts

TORONTO – As Toronto welcomes the world to BMO Field next summer when the city plays host to the 2026 FIFA World Cup, the Toronto Argonauts’ 2026 home schedule will be adjusted to accommodate the major event. BMO Field, which has been undergoing renovations for the biggest soccer event in the...

www.argonauts.ca