As Vancouver prepares to welcome the world next week for the World Cup, the city is starting to show signs of soccer fever — but not in the bold, branded wave some might expect for a global sporting event of such scale.
At Royal Centre mall on Friday, national flags hung from the foyer’s ceiling alongside oversized inflatable soccer balls. “Go Canada” signs covered walls throughout the shopping centre, while a dollar store inside stocked country flags for teams scheduled to play in Vancouver, including Belgium, Egypt and Switzerland. Nearby shelves were filled with soccer-themed party supplies, from paper plates and napkins to bubble wands topped with miniature soccer balls.
But behind the decorations, there is a more complicated picture for entrepreneurs trying to get in on the action. Local businesses are keen to tap into the excitement around one of the world’s biggest sporting events. But unless they have secured a FIFA commercial licence, many are being shut out of official branding, and are instead finding ways to nod to the tournament without naming its protected branding.
That split is already showing up across souvenir storefronts in Gastown. On Friday, store windows of official FIFA partners were filled with licensed logos and merchandise, while other businesses are working around strict trademark rules that limit the use of protected branding — including “FIFA,” “World Cup,” and official logos and mascots — without a paid licence.
One Cordova Street souvenir shop owner, who asked Postmedia not to be named, designed unofficial fan apparel to sell in the lead-up to the tournament. The shirts showcase a soccer player, a mix of national flags of participating countries, and the slogan, “The Game Unites Us 2026.”
“I played by all the rules,” he said Friday, noting that the black T-shirts have been selling well since they were placed on the shelves. The owner, who has been in the souvenir business for two decades, said the situation contrasts with the 2010 Winter Olympics, when Vanoc licensed numerous Canadian companies, including several based in B.C., to produce official Games merchandise, with suppliers visiting Vancouver businesses and offering them opportunities to cash in.
“I could only find one local supplier of licensed FIFA 2026 merchandise. So I purchased and ordered around 100 mugs and shot glasses from them,” he said. “I haven’t tried to get much more than that because I am skeptical of the hype around the World Cup. Those months, June and July, are already our busy season.”
A walk through Gastown on Friday revealed few visible signs of the large-scale tournament. Most souvenir shops carried only a handful of licensed FIFA products — typically mugs or shot glasses priced for less than $20 each. The rest relied on generic soccer-themed merchandise or unofficial World Cup apparel to sell on their shelves. One Water Street souvenir shop is selling a range of T-shirts promoting the tournament, including one in its store window that reads, “World Cup 2026.”
