B.C. courting Qataris and the world through the World Cup

Premier David Eby speaks at B.C. Place, in front of the freshly-installed natural grass playing surface, during a press conference on Tuesday. Photo by NICK PROCAYLO /PNG

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A month out from the World Cup, and there is still no sign of the final cost taxpayers will fork out for hosting Vancouver’s portion of the massive soccer tournament.

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During a press conference to showcase the extensive capital upgrades made to B.C. Place ahead of this summer’s World Cup games, Premier David Eby said he understands the public’s desire for transparency on the final dollar figure, which has yet to be updated from the $532 to $624 million range given last year.

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“I understand the important need to have the final and full accounting of the cost of the event available to the public,” he said. “Our intention was to release that with our partners closer to the date of the first game, but I have asked our team to bring that forward to ensure that we have the total out to the public by the end of the month.”

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A source with PavCo, the Crown corporation that runs B.C. Place, said the renovations to the stadium — revealed to the public for the first time Tuesday — are well within the $190M budget, and the final number would be released alongside the government’s overall total later this month.

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B.C. Place stadium on Tuesday afternoon Photo by NICK PROCAYLO /PNG

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Eby said the estimated economic impact of hosting the tournament would be “about a billion dollars” and said the tournament will provide an opportunity to court investors from around the world in line with their Look West economic strategy, pointing to the Canada-Qatar game at B.C. Place on June 18 as an example.

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“We know that we can’t rely on the United States the way that we used to before, and so part of our strategy has been welcoming in trading partners from around the world,” Eby said. “We have an opportunity here. For example, Qatar is coming to British Columbia. This is a country that the Prime Minister has prioritized reaching out to in terms of investment opportunities in British Columbia.

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“We are going to host the Qatari delegation here with an eye to supporting their understanding of the remarkable investment opportunities here in British Columbia. And so this is definitely a celebration for British Columbians.”

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Eby fielded questions ranging from the B.C. Nurses’ Union’s near-unanimous strike vote, to the sky-high cost of FIFA tickets, to whether the provincial government would buying blocks of their own tickets, but was also hit with several queries on the state of the Whitecaps.

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The premier, members of his cabinet, Major League Soccer executives and the Whitecaps will be meeting Wednesday to see if there was a path to something else that would cause celebrations: keeping the professional soccer team in Vancouver.

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The Caps are up for sale and linked to a relocation bid from a Las Vegas group, but a local group that includes First Nations investors will be part of Wednesday’s meeting.

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“I don’t have any details of any bids that have been approved or vetted by MLS. I’ve heard informal discussion of groups that are interested in bringing forward those bids to MLS,” he said. “What I can say is that regardless of whether it’s the current ownership or new ownership, that we still have to do this work as a province of bringing together these key stakeholders. … Regardless of what bids might come forward, what proposals might come forward from MLS, we want to be ready and prepared to be able to provide that clear landing strip for someone who wants to bring that plane in.