MD3504 Men's FIFA World Cup 2026 - screening of the final

1.1.    London has set a precedent of planning and delivering free-to-attend public screening events, when national teams make it through to the final of a UEFA or FIFA football tournament. 

1.2.    Interest in England’s men’s and women’s senior teams remains extremely high. Major tournaments such as the UEFA EUROs and the FIFA World Cup have driven London wide celebrations, and strong public demand for managed screening events. The GLA has, accordingly, delivered a series of high profile public screenings, including: 

•    the Men’s World Cup semi final in 2018

•    the Men’s European Championship finals in 2021 and 2024

•    the Women’s European Championship final in Trafalgar Square in 2022

•    the Women’s World Cup final in 2023.

1.3.    Should England reach the final of Men’s FIFA World Cup 2026, London intends to host a screening event at the O2 Arena. This will take place at 8pm on Sunday 19 July 2026. 

1.4.    The Men’s FIFA World Cup 2026 will run from 11 June 2026 to 19 July 2026 across the United States, Canada and Mexico. It is the first 48team World Cup; and is due to be one of the largest global sporting events in history. 

1.5.    The Men’s FIFA World Cup 2026 final is scheduled for Sunday 19 July 2026 at the MetLife Stadium, New Jersey. The estimated kick-off time in the UK is 20:00 BST; the match is likely to finish at around 22:00 BST, if no extra time or penalties are needed.

1.6.    Providing a screening event in London, for an England final, helps London-wide transport operators and emergency services to manage demand on their services. This is particularly important when many people are expected to be out on the streets, looking for places to watch the game and celebrate together.

1.7.    Experience from previous screening events shows that, as England progress further in international competitions, the level of excitement and enthusiasm within London rises significantly. This is not only reflected in the public’s energy; it’s also seen in the demand for larger, more organised events, such as public screenings, to accommodate the increasing number of fans eager to participate in the experience.

1.8.    The Major Sports Events (MSE) team carried out a scoping exercise in January, to identify suitable outdoor and indoor venues in which to screen the final. At that time, Clapham Common was found to be the most suitable location. However, due to challenges with timelines for approving a premises licence, Fan Parks (the organiser) withdrew its event application for Clapham Common at the beginning of April. Since then, the MSE has team carried out further scoping work; and has found that the O2 Arena is available to host a screening for the final. This venue is tried and tested – and allows London to replicate the successful screening for the Men’s EURO 2024 finals, which featured the England men’s team. 

1.9.    The O2 Arena has been identified as the most suitable location for a screening event, with a capacity of approximately 20,000. It requires minimal infrastructure and overlay – significantly reducing the cost of delivery. This is in contrast to a greenfield site, which would require significant infrastructure, licensing, resource and planning. As such, this option is prohibitive in terms of both time and cost. 

1.10.    England is not guaranteed to make it to the FIFA World Cup final. However, it is necessary to plan delivery of a screening event, before England’s place in the final can be confirmed. All work will be done to minimise, as much as possible, committed costs in the lead-up to the final; and a schedule of milestones for latest dates of cost commitments will be scoped out with the procured supplier. 

1.11.    The screening of the men’s EURO final in 2024, at the O2 Arena, was delivered at a cost of £366,081 (£266,081 for production, and £100,000 for venue hire). This was approved in Mayoral Decision (MD) 3237. 

1.12.    Costs are expected to have risen since 2024. As such, a budget of £400,000 has been identified. This MD seeks funding solely for production and venue-hire costs, to deliver a screening of the final on 19 July 2026.

1.13.    The anticipated budget is broken down as follows:
 

1.14.    The MSE team will review ticket pricing options, where appropriate, to support cost recovery, while remaining aligned with the Mayor of London’s objectives on accessibility.

1.15.    Sponsorship and partnership opportunities will also be pursued to help reduce overall public spend. To minimise conflicts of interest, and ensure smooth delivery, any prospective sponsors or partners will align with existing agreements associated with the O2 Arena and the FIFA World Cup 2026.

1.16.    Delegated authority will be granted to the Executive Director of Strategy and Communications, to approve and accept sponsorship and partnership income, and set ticket prices.

1.17.    The GLA will endeavour to minimise sunk costs. However, there will be some degree of financial loss, due to the nature of the event. Approximately 65 per cent of production costs would be incurred if England were to reach the semi-finals, but not progress to the final. 

1.18.    The full venue hire fee will be committed on 16 July 2026, after the semi-finals. This will further reduce committed spend, ahead of assurance that England are in the final.

1.19.    Put simply, sunk costs upon England reaching the semi-finals, but not the final, are estimated to be £135,000 (33.75 per cent of the total budget).

1.20.    We will also work with the appointed event production company to agree feasible payment milestones, where possible, to minimise public spend should England leave the competition in earlier stages. The milestone structure at paragraph 1.21, below, should be treated as the GLA’s preferred position. However, final milestone payments will need to be agreed with the production agency, taking into account their supplier commitments. 

1.21.    The proposed production-cost payment milestones are as follows:

•    upon contract signing (25 per cent): £75,000

•    upon England reaching the quarter-finals (10 per cent): £30,000

•    upon England reaching the semi-finals (10 per cent): £30,000

•    upon England reaching the final (55 per cent): £165,000.

1.22.    The O2 have agreed to favourable payment terms which enable payment for the venue hire to be made post semi-finals and confirmation of England’s position on 14 and 15 July, meaning no spend will be committed unless the event is confirmed to take place. 

Project governance 

1.23.    The GLA will coordinate regular London-partner planning meetings from early May onwards. The lead officer from the MSE team will ensure that the production agency, relevant London partners, and the GLA are included in these meetings, to: 

•    offer project advice and support

•    ensure the project aligns with Mayoral strategic priorities and is delivered safely and securely.  

1.24.    Due to the nature of the project, and the timeline, there will be sunk costs before it is clear whether England have progressed to the final. These will be minimised by carefully managing the delivery contract; and using the expertise of officers who have previously managed similar projects. London will seek a commercial partner to offset costs. It should be noted that, if England do not progress to the final, the event will not take place; and any remaining budget will be returned to the allocated cost centre. Any partnership funding is likely to be secured on the basis that England progress to the final and the event goes ahead. If England do not progress to the final, and the event does not take place, then no partner funding is expected to be provided to offset costs.  
 

2.1.    The objectives are to: 

•    showcase London as the home for celebratory moments of national importance 

•    enable Londoners to join together and celebrate the team’s success and national pride 

•    support delivery of the GLA’s MSE strategy, ‘London: Home of World Class Sport’ 

•    increase international exposure for London as a major destination for world-class sport and tourism 

•    contribute to achieving the Mayor’s ‘Tourism Vision for London’. 

2.2.    The scope and objectives of this project align with section 3.5 of the Boosting London’s Growth Sectors programme’s delivery plan (MD3430), through the aim to ensure London is an attractive and high-quality destination for visitors. 
 

3.1.    Under section 149 of the Equality Act 2010, the Mayor and the GLA are subject to the public sector equality duty and must have due regard to the need to:  

•    eliminate unlawful discrimination, harassment, and victimisation 

•    advance equality of opportunity between people who share a relevant protected characteristic and those who do not  

•    foster good relations between people who share a relevant protected characteristic and those who do not.  

3.2.    The “protected characteristics” are age, disability, gender reassignment, pregnancy and maternity, race, religion or belief, sex, sexual orientation, and marriage/civil partnership status. The duty involves having appropriate regard to these matters as they apply in the circumstances, including having regard to the need to: 

•    remove or minimise any disadvantage suffered by those who share or are connected to a protected characteristic

•    take steps to meet the different needs of such people

•    encourage them to participate in public life or in any other activity where their participation is disproportionately low. 

This can involve treating people with a protected characteristic more favourably than those without one. 

3.3.    The MSE team will consult a wide range of stakeholders to ensure that as many Londoners as possible, including those with protected characteristics, are considered in the planning of the event; and can be involved.

3.4.    The team will ensure that appropriate assistance is given to all Londoners and visitors at the event with whom we may have difficulties communicating; and that the event is fully accessible.

3.5.    The team will work with relevant GLA teams to identify community groups who may benefit from attending a screening event; a select number of free tickets will be reserved for community stakeholders. 
 

Risks

4.1.    The main risks and mitigations are outlined in the table below.

Links to Mayoral strategies and priorities 

4.2.    GLA support for the event will:

•    support the Mayor’s objectives for the Boosting London’s Growth Sectors programme (MD3430), as outlined in section 3.5 of its delivery plan

•    support delivery of the Mayor’s sports strategy, Sport Unites

•    support delivery of the GLA’s major sports event framework, London: Home of World Class Sport.

Conflicts of interest

4.3.    There are no conflicts of interest to declare for those involved in the drafting or clearance of this decision form. 
 

5.1.    Approval is sought to spend £400,000, to meet the costs of screening the final of the FIFA World Cup on 19 July at the O2 Arena, should the England team progress that far.

5.2.    The costs will be funded from the Major events reserve; and applied to the ‘Securing major sports and entertainment events’ project budget within the Boosting London’s Growth Sectors programme.

5.3.    Upon appointment of an events production company, the MSE team will seek to agree on payment milestones linked to the England team’s progress. This is in order to minimise sunk costs, should the team not progress within the tournament (see paragraph 1.21, above).
 

Legal powers

6.1.    The foregoing sections of this report indicate that the decisions requested of the Mayor fall within the statutory powers of the GLA to promote and/or to do anything that is facilitative of, or conducive or incidental to, social development, economic development and wealth creation within Greater London. In formulating the proposals in respect of which a decision is sought, officers have complied with the GLA’s related statutory duties to:

•    pay due regard to the principle that there should be equality of opportunity for all people

•    consider how the proposals will promote the improvement of health of persons, health inequalities between persons and to contribute towards the achievement of sustainable development in the UK

•    consult with appropriate bodies.

6.2.    The decision above also falls within the statutory powers of the GLA, under section 378 of the Greater London Authority Act 1999, to: 

•    do anything for the purposes of encouraging people to visit Greater London

•    encourage people from outside the UK, to visit the UK via Greater London. 

As set out at paragraph 2.1, above, the screening of the final will “increase international exposure for London as a major destination for world-class sport and tourism”.

6.3.    In taking the decisions requested of him, the Mayor must have due regard to the Public Sector Equality Duty – namely, the need to: eliminate discrimination, harassment, victimisation and any other conduct prohibited by the Equality Act 2010; advance equality of opportunity between persons who share a relevant protected characteristic (race, disability, sex, age, sexual orientation, religion or belief, pregnancy and maternity, and gender reassignment) and persons who do not share it; and foster good relations between persons who share a relevant protected characteristic and persons who do not share it (section 149 of the Equality Act 2010). To this end, the Mayor should have particular regard to section 3 (above) of this report.

Procurement

6.4.    The decision seeks approval to spend up to £400,000 for venue hire, and associated production costs, for the public screening of the Men’s FIFA World Cup 2026 final, if the England team progress that far. Officers have set out, above, how costs will be minimised if the England team does not make the final. Moreover, officers are reminded to comply with the requirements of the GLA’s Contracts and Funding Code, when they undertake procurements in furtherance of the project.
 

7.1.    This work will be completed according to the following timetable:

None.