The Government of British Columbia has set up a temporary tax boost that will help fund co-hosting the 2026 FIFA World Cup finals ©Getty Images

The Government of British Columbia (BC), which said last month it would not support a Vancouver bid to stage the 2030 Winter Olympic and Paralympic Games for financial reasons, has set up a temporary tax boost that will help fund co-hosting the 2026 FIFA World Cup finals.

The BC Minister of Finance, Selina Robinson, announced a new Major Events Municipal and Regional District Tax (Major Events MRDT) of up to 2.5 per cent on short-term accommodation sales to help local Governments cover the cost of the hosting of international events.

The Provincial Government established the Major Events MRDT policy after the City of Vancouver requested that the MRDT already in place be temporarily increased to help cover the municipal costs of planning, staging, and hosting the 2026 FIFA World Cup.

"We are thrilled that Vancouver was selected as one of the host cities for the FIFA World Cup 2026, the largest single sporting event in the world," said BC Tourism Minister Lisa Beare in a statement.

"This tool will support our partnership with the city to ensure the event is a success."

The current MRDT on the hotel room rate within Vancouver is three per cent.

With the additional temporary Major Events MRDT, the total MRDT could increase to up to 5.5 per cent.

The Government of British Columbia did not support Vancouver, which staged the 2010 Winter Olympics, doing so again in 2030 - on financial grounds ©Getty Images
The Government of British Columbia did not support Vancouver, which staged the 2010 Winter Olympics, doing so again in 2030 - on financial grounds ©Getty Images

Vancouver and Toronto are the Canadian cities amongst the 16 in North America that are due to co-host the 2026 FIFA World Cup.

Canada is expected to be assigned 10 of the tournament’s 80 matches, and it is speculated that Vancouver, with its superior venue of BC Place Stadium, will be assigned more matches than Toronto.

The Provincial Government anticipates that the full public cost of staging the World Cup in Vancouver will be up to CAN260 million (£169 million/$189 million/€194 million).

The decision to formally decline support for the First Nations-led bid to host the 2030 Winter Olympics in Vancouver, Whistler, and Sun Peaks was taken on grounds of potential cost.

Beare confirmed "the Province is declining to support a bid", stating that "the billions of dollars in direct costs" and "indemnity liability risks" could jeopardise the Government’s ability to address problems facing British Columbians.

The City of Vancouver estimated its municipal costs for its role in staging the 2030 Winter Olympics would be between CAN130 million (£85 million/$94 million/€97 million) and CAN200 million (£130 million/$145 million/€149 million).

It spent CAN500 million (£326 milllion/$364 million/€373 million) on the 2010 Winter Olympic Games.