Toronto FC made history Saturday night, welcoming their biggest crowd ever to BMO Field as nearly 45,000 soccer fans came out to witness Lionel Messi and Inter Miami in action. The match doubled as a crucial preparation exercise for Toronto’s upcoming role as a World Cup host city.
The stadium was packed with supporters wearing Miami’s distinctive pink and black jerseys alongside Argentina’s traditional blue and white colors, all eager to see the legendary eight-time Ballon d’Or champion in person. Messi delivered for the crowd, finding the net in Inter Miami’s 4-2 victory over Toronto FC.
Toronto Mayor Olivia Chow acknowledged the weekend’s significance on Friday, stating: “This weekend will serve as a real life test run with a number of high attendance sporting events in town.” The mayor was also referencing concurrent Toronto Blue Jays games and the Sporting Life 10K race happening in the city.
The attendance figure of 44,828 provided Toronto officials with valuable insights into crowd management, from stadium entry and exit procedures to public transportation coordination. Security personnel faced their own challenges when multiple fans attempted to storm the field in the final minutes, hoping to get close to the 38-year-old Argentine superstar.
Sharon Bollenbach, who leads the World Cup 2026 Toronto Secretariat, emphasized the event’s importance in a Reuters statement: “This weekend’s match is a valuable opportunity for city divisions, emergency services, transit agencies, venue operators and other partners to work together in a live event setting, to test and refine as required before the matches begin.”
City officials anticipate more than 300,000 visitors will descend on Toronto during the World Cup tournament. Saturday’s game marked Toronto FC’s last home appearance before the June 11-July 19 competition begins.
BMO Field underwent significant renovations worth $158 million, including the installation of 17,000 temporary seats positioned behind both goals to satisfy World Cup capacity requirements. These additional seats made their debut during Saturday’s match.
The towering temporary structures sparked safety concerns on social media back in March, with one user posting on X: “Just saw a photo of BMO’s temporary seating. Respectfully, you couldn’t pay me to climb, stand or sit on that.”
However, fans seemed comfortable with the new seating arrangements on Saturday. Many supporters in the uppermost sections chose to stand with their backs to the railings, taking in panoramic views of Lake Ontario after the final whistle.
Metrolinx, the agency operating the city’s GO train network, announced Wednesday it would treat the match as a “readiness test,” implementing increased service frequency to the station serving BMO Field along with enhanced safety protocols and crowd control measures.
The transportation authority expects roughly 500,000 additional passengers to use their services during the World Cup, which will be jointly hosted by Canada, the United States, and Mexico.
Canada’s World Cup journey begins June 12 when they face Bosnia and Herzegovina at BMO Stadium. The Canadian squad will also take on 2022 World Cup hosts Qatar and Switzerland as part of Group B competition.
