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The city is investing $123 million in the project, while MLSE will contribute another $23 million.

Here’s what those heading to the venue will see.

New rooftop patio, upgraded concessions

While the temporary seating will be torn down soon after the World Cup, some upgrades will stay.

The stadium will add a 1,000-person rooftop patio on the north end of the stadium, as well as suite space around the venue.

Four new video boards will be installed, one at each corner of the pitch, and the stadium will add new lighting and sound systems. The Wi-Fi will be upgraded from its current 30,000-device capacity, too.

The stadium will also implement self-serve and artificial-intelligence technology — including Amazon’s no-checkout, Just Walk Out system — at concession stands and add a “state-of-the-art” kitchen in the west grandstand.

Making seating permanent would be ‘prohibitive’

The temporary seating — 10,000 at the north end of the stadium and 7,000 at the south end — won’t stay up for long. The grandstands will have to come down by the Canadian National Exhibition in August 2026, said MLSE chief operating officer Nick Eaves.

“The window during which the actual temporary seating is relatively tight,” Eaves said.

Eaves said MLSE considered making the additional seating permanent, but found the costs would be “significantly higher” and “prohibitive.”

Budget could be in flux with tariffs on the way

U.S. President Donald Trump has said he’ll impose 25 per cent tariffs on Canada and Mexico starting Tuesday and said there is no room left for either country to negotiate. His announcement sent stock indexes and the Canadian dollar plunging.

It could mean bad news for Toronto, whose World Cup budget has already ballooned to $380 million — a number Sharon Bollenbach, executive director of Toronto’s World Cup secretariat, said the city will hold at.

“We do have some contingency built into the budget which we, if we have to, will tap into,” Bollenbach said. The city is committed to cost containment, “tariffs or no tariffs.”

Other preparations in the works

The city is also implementing a temporary World Cup tax on hotel bills to help pay for the estimated $380-million tournament.

The fee — an increase of 2.5 per cent to the hotel and short-term rental tax — will be in place from June 1, 2025 to July 31, 2026, and is expected to generate $56.6 million for the city. The hotel industry has criticized the bump, saying it makes pc28����a less attractive destination.

Mayor Olivia Chow has defended the tax increase. She said in November that hotels are “doing very well” and the tax will ensure they are “paying their share and sharing their wealth.”

Toronto, one of 16 cities across North America in line to host the tournament, will see six games total, five of which will be opening-round matches — including Canada’s first game at BMO Field on June 12, 2026.