‘Year of sport’: SecState van Koeverden pitches Canada as ‘best host nation in the world’ ahead of 2026 World Cup

Athletics 'are a great way to open doors,' says Secretary of State for Sport Adam van Koeverden. But although the World Cup excitement is ‘undeniable,’ human rights concerns, and hockey’s ‘reckoning’ in 2025 have left Canadian fans feeling ‘deeply conflicted,’ counters NDP critic Gord Johns.

Secretary of State for Sport Adam van Koeverden is betting on Canadians seizing the economic, diplomatic, and social dividends offered by the 13 World Cup matches scheduled in Toronto and Vancouver next summer, and hopes the tournament's legacy will inspire Canadian kids to choose 'teammates over TikTok.'The Hill Times photograph by Andrew Meade

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BY STUART BENSON

December 31, 2025

As Canada prepares to co-host next summer's FIFA World Cup alongside the United States and Mexico, Secretary of State for Sport Adam van Koeverden views the upcoming 39-day tournament as the centrepiece of what he hopes will be Canada’s “Year of Sport.”

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