A bit of rain was not enough to keep hundreds of Prince George residents away from Canada Games Plaza to take in the final match of the 2026 FIFA World Cup.
It took until the 106th minute for Ferran Torres to open the scoring, with what would be the lone goal of the match, giving Spain the 1-0 win and the 2026 FIFA World Cup.
The City of Prince George held a Watch Party in the Plaza this afternoon, with food, entertainment, and much more, capping off an incredible tournament, part of which took place in our country.
“I think it’s been a historic tournament, historic amount of teams, games, and really the big players came to play, and they have been marvelous,” said City Councillor and massive soccer fan Ron Polillo.
“Historic” is the way Polillo described Canada’s run in the tournament as well.
“To make the round of 16 is unprecedented, and I hope they can build off that momentum and maybe someday, Canada can play in a World Cup Final,” he said. “You look at the small nations that performed so well in this tournament, there is hope, and it’s going to be amazing.”
Polillo added hosting games not just in Canada, but in our province down in Vancouver, will help grow the game in the great white north.
“We have to build on that momentum, and we have to build on what we’ve created together,” he said. “If you look, just this weekend, our U14 Girls and U16 Girls won provincial titles, so we’ve got to build, keep on building, and put a plan together, and hopefully the sport can grow, and someday, we could be playing on a stage like this.”
While rain has been falling throughout the weekend as the City hosted a couple of events surrounding the tournament, fans flocked to the Plaza to take in the final game together.
“To have this amount of people, I think shows how soccer unifies people and the passion that people have,” he said. “These are die-hards, to come out and watch a final like this, and I’m so happy to have a small part in it to make this happen.”
Polillo helped get the ball rolling on the Watch Party in the Plaza in the fall, putting forward a Notice of Motion with Councillor Cori Ramsay to look into hosting an outdoor watch party.
The City received $50,000 from the provincial government to put on the watch party.
A drone show will also take place in the area tonight at around 10:00 (Sunday).
Something going on in the Prince George area you think people should know about?
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