{"id":91285,"date":"2026-06-16T21:30:17","date_gmt":"2026-06-16T21:30:17","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/canada\/91285\/"},"modified":"2026-06-16T21:30:17","modified_gmt":"2026-06-16T21:30:17","slug":"the-free-fifa-fan-fest-is-not-necessarily-free-but-it-is-an-experience","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/canada\/91285\/","title":{"rendered":"The free FIFA Fan Fest is not necessarily free, but it is an experience"},"content":{"rendered":"

Open this photo in gallery:<\/a><\/p>\n

Fans celebrate Canada’s first goal at the FIFA Fan Fest, on Friday in Vancouver.Jennifer Gauthier\/Reuters<\/p>\n

So, Canada: sky-high ticket prices, road closings and parading fans clogging streets aside, how are you enjoying the World Cup<\/a> so far? <\/p>\n

In spite of my continuing search for tickets<\/a> that won\u2019t cause me to default on my mortgage, or the 40 minutes it took me in Vancouver on game-day Saturday to get somewhere that normally takes about 10, I am still attempting to embrace the excitement. Especially ahead of Thursday, when Vancouver hosts its first Team Canada game.<\/p>\n

And so, off I went to last Friday to Vancouver\u2019s PNE grounds to witness history \u2013 Canada\u2019s first World Cup game as host<\/a>, and, by the end, Canada\u2019s first point in a men\u2019s World Cup ever. This is the site of the FIFA Fan Festival\u2122, the organization\u2019s official off-site public viewing party, and yes, that trademark symbol is part of the title.<\/p>\n

This is touted as the free alternative to attending an actual game. And free it can be. However, you may prefer to \u201cenhance your experience with a Premium ticket,\u201d as the website entices. If by \u201cenhance your experience,\u201d you mean, get to be in the brand-new amphitheatre that is the centre of the (remote) action, and actually get to sit down at some point in there, yes, this is accurate. <\/p>\n

Canada eyes topping World Cup group as it prepares for key Qatar match<\/a><\/p>\n

If you don\u2019t want to pay and don\u2019t want to stand for two hours, there are screens set up throughout the grounds, in particular in a grassy area near the entrance. It can get pretty tight and could use more shade, but you can sit. And it\u2019s free.<\/p>\n

Otherwise you can pay for actual seats in the amphitheatre (just over $115 or $126 a seat) or pay just over $44 for access to the lawn at the back. The lawn, for me anyway, felt too far from screens that were too small to see the action properly from that distance. The seats were closer and comfy, if pricey.<\/p>\n

I\u2019ll admit I was grumpy after having my water bottle confiscated at the gate. (Plastic only, kids! Never mind the planet!) And I was a bit in shock from the price of a FIFA Vancouver t-shirt I was eyeing at the merch store \u2013 $82 (but 10 per cent off if you pay with Visa). Clouding it all was my continuing frustration<\/a> at not being able to secure tickets for an actual game for my soccer-obsessed son for less than what a high-end couch would cost us. (I\u2019m still trying.)<\/p>\n

Open this photo in gallery:<\/a><\/p>\n

Fans watch the match on a screen at the FIFA Fan Fest.Jennifer Gauthier\/Reuters<\/p>\n

And yet, I had fun.<\/p>\n

When Canada tied the game, the crowd went wild. Even before that, the feeling in the amphitheatre was, dare I say, electric. People, some of them wrapped in Coca-Cola flags, singing O Canada, booing the U.S. flag, the uproarious 3-2-1 countdown to kickoff, the many chants of ol\u00e9, ol\u00e9, ol\u00e9. Even the $44 ticket holders I spoke to up on the faraway grass were happy; a small price to pay for not having to line up to get in, they said. <\/p>\n

The plastic water bottle was half-full, soccer fans!<\/p>\n

I loved the grassy flower mascot things (they are called the Living Hedges, I have since learned) wandering around. The food truck and concession prices were far less gouge-y than at the actual games. The shuttle bus and ride-share systems were operating smoothly. In an Uber, I did the reporter thing and asked the driver who he was rooting for in the World Cup. \u201cI\u2019m rooting for Uber to be busy,\u201d he said. Fair. <\/p>\n

The spirit is extending into the city. The parading Australia and Turkey fans moving through central Vancouver Saturday, draining at least one pub<\/a> of its non-Guinness beer supply \u2013 now that\u2019s fun. And good business! <\/p>\n

Open this photo in gallery:<\/a><\/p>\n

Fans arrive at the FIFA Fan Fest before Friday’s match.Jennifer Gauthier\/Reuters<\/p>\n

People are out on the streets wearing Team Canada shirts. There are watch parties in public spaces, busy restaurants \u2013 and living rooms. The city feels alive. The spirit is infecting even some people like me, the grumblers and fence-sitters (because I can\u2019t afford an actual seat, badum-tss).<\/p>\n

Maybe some young fan will have the time of their life \u2013 maybe at the game, maybe at a fan zone, maybe kicking around their own soccer ball.<\/p>\n

If I can get sentimental for a moment, spring is the season of new beginnings. But it has its endings too \u2013 some devastating, others beautiful (it\u2019s grad week around here). We need to embrace every moment. With friends and loved ones, even on a $44 hill, even if the screen is too small, the bottled water a little pricey. Being there together is the point. Life is a beautiful game.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"Open this photo in gallery: Fans celebrate Canada’s first goal at the FIFA Fan Fest, on Friday in…\n","protected":false},"author":2,"featured_media":91286,"comment_status":"","ping_status":"","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[15],"tags":[136,3118,135,13111,13110,3119,95],"class_list":["post-91285","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","category-vancouver","tag-appwebview","tag-column","tag-dei","tag-lederman","tag-marsha-lederman","tag-opinion","tag-vancouver"],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/canada\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/91285","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/canada\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/canada\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/canada\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/2"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/canada\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=91285"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/canada\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/91285\/revisions"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/canada\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/91286"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/canada\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=91285"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/canada\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=91285"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/canada\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=91285"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}